The current crisis of COVID-19 including far-reaching responses such as “Stay at Home” directives, closures of schools and non-essentials businesses, mandated social distancing, and personal hygiene procedures have profoundly impacted the well-being of people nationally. Students enrolled in higher learning institutions when the pandemic hit are experiencing challenges impacting their mental health. Students with intellectual and other developmental disabilities, including those on the autism spectrum, are no exception. Personnel charged with assisting students academically, find themselves with an increasing duty to support the mental health of these students in addition to addressing their support needs in new virtual learning environments.
This webinar featured a panel presentation of lessons learned and “instructional nuggets” shared from the past (2020-2021) year. COVID-19 turned our instructional world on its head. The panelists shared authentic stories of uncertainty, failures, and successes, emerging practices, and lessons learned from our students. Allison Ferrier shared the invaluable role of and ways to utilize instructional assistance during a synchronous Zoom class. Beth Syverson presented online tools that helped her capitalize on the unique benefits of online teaching. Ivan Stanojkovic provided ways of keeping our sessions engaging, interactive, and with limited bugs. Katie Stubblefield shared how she used TV game-show strategies to inspire participation and engagement. The presentation was followed by a question-and-answer session.