A time to speak (commentary)

The year 2020, the year of the COVID-19 pandemic has brought us consecutive phases of shock, disbelief and negation. As we were celebrating the New Year, we had already begun to hear of a new dangerous illness spreading in China, but most of us preferred to think then that it would not reach us. As it turns out, our Western governments and international organizations seem to also have found a similar line of reasoning, and took their time in preparing for a health crisis in our parts of the world. Then came the shock of the Italian health system meltdown. Following it, many countries, including Poland, suddenly went into lockdown in early spring, and imposed restrictions on mobility which froze entire societies, economies, and social institutions. Schools and universities introduced distance learning. In practice, as a best scenario, this meant that professional experiments were launched where the administrators provided teachers with space to do so. At worst, sensitive and complex pedagogical processes were forced into a Procrustean bed of platforms and appliances created for corporate use. [...]