How schools can value the strengths children gain from adversity
Teachers’ Voices Season 4 Episode 10
Author
Join educational researcher Nina Alonso for this podcast series as she shares powerful stories from teachers around the world, talking in their own words about their own experiences.
How can educators recognise and build on the strengths children gain from adversity? What happens when teachers shift from seeing deficits to seeing potential? How are children changing their own narratives with the support of educators?
In this episode, Nina explores children’s resilience and the strength they gain from living in difficult circumstances.
Nina first speaks with Gabriele Paone, a researcher in Oxford in the UK who studies how children in high-stress environments in different parts of the world develop strengths that are often overlooked. Gabriele focuses not on what students lack, instead recognising how they adapt, cope, and grow in the face of adversity. “Shifting from a deficit perspective to an adaptive one encourages educators to see potential strengths in differences”, Gabriele says.
“Shifting from a deficit perspective to an adaptive one encourages educators to see potential strengths in differences.”
Gabriele Paone
Nina then speaks with Murimi Nyaga, known as Turi, a teacher and Teach For Kenya fellow working in Machakos, Kenya. Turi teaches in a rural community where students face family hardships, poverty, and emotional challenges. Despite this, he has seen students thrive when given support and creative outlets. Through projects like arts and music, children are building confidence and discovering hidden talents. “The learners that have been engaged in the project have gained esteem”, Turi says. “They’re able to take up responsibilities. They’re able to take up leadership in the school.”
Finally, Nina talks with Gilson Penha, a teacher and coordinator in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Gilson works in schools that serve neighbourhoods impacted by inequality and violence. Gilson developed a story with Turi’s students about a young warrior who uses a magical spear to free his people from oppression. This story helped his students see themselves as protagonists of a story of change. “I really believe that education can change the social context within our neighborhood, within our community”, says Gilson.
Join the Teachers’ Voices WhatsApp group and read the community guidelines.
Listen out for
- Stress-adapted skills, like quick decision-making
- How scouting helped students in a rural Kenyan school
- Reframing how struggles are viewed
Find out more on BOLD
Helping children thrive through adversity – Innovative solutions for supporting early childhood development in crisis-affected areas (Heidi Rosbe, Acting Project Director, Ahlan Simsim, International Rescue Committee)
School leadership in emergencies – In this episode of Teachers’ Voices, Nina explores how school leaders, communities, and technology help sustain learning in crisis contexts.
Harnessing the hidden strengths of children in poverty – Meriah Lee DeJoseph and Monica Ellwood-Lowe ask how focusing on the strengths gained from a childhood in poverty transform children’s opportunities for thriving.
Guests
Gabriele Paone: Website
Murimi Nyaga (Turi): LinkedIn
Gilson Penha: Instagram
Author