The self-study described here was inspired by an event during the COVID-19 pandemic, involving a high school student, a preservice teacher, the preservice teacher’s pedagogical instructor (PI), and a school counselor. This is how it unfolded: Lian (pseudo name) , a 10th-grade student, sent a WhatsApp text to Amy, her philosophy teacher, after a lesson taught via Zoom during the first COVID-19 lockdown. The lesson’s contents had aroused her anxiety. The teacher recognized suicidal hints in the text and sent me (her PI) a message, asking for advice. In turn, I called Rona, a senior educational counselor. She supported me over the phone and made suggestions. I passed these on to the teacher and guided her response to the child, we also involved the school’s counselor. This chain of support was empowering and hopeful despite its remote, non-face-to-face interaction.

In this self-study, I reflect critically on my response to the situation, the professional choices involved (prior and during the event), and the interpersonal contexts in which the situation occurred. With the help of a critical friend, I examine the particular challenges and new opportunities granted to this professional and personal chain of response and responsibility under the conditions of remote learning.

The theoretical background of the study is based on thegrowing awareness of social emotional learning (SEL) as central to teaching and learning (Walker & Weidenbenner, 2019).SEL has developed substantially in recent decades and is advocated by leading organizations (MGIEP, 2020). Additionally we hear of the importance of investing in the SEL competence of teachers during teacher training (Jennings & Frank 2015), however, it was found that SEL is still not getting enough attention in teacher education programs.

The COVID-19 crisis has deepened the need for emotional support for children and youths, with a worrying growth of depression, anxiety, and other expressions of emotional distress (Racine et al., 2021). At the same time, the educational circumstances have magnified educators’ challenge to express their own social emotional skills in class and to cultivate those skills among their students (Hadar et al., 2020). Yet this new reality has also created new opportunities to meet old objectives, as I show herein.

The school counselor is responsible mainly for students’ emotional well-being in school. A main duty is indirect support through guidance of “significant others” in students’ lives, mostly parents and teachers. Teachers and counselors see collaboration as an essential aspect of a counselor’s work (Gibbons et al., 2010, Slijepčević,& Zuković, 2021). However, cooperation is a complex issue, even in normal school routines (LaBoskey, 2004ewa et. Al. 2016) In the case studied here, I examine this challenge in light of two additional obstacles: remote learning and the work of a preservice teacher.

My research questions are: What can I learn from this case about my  work and about the is  and the ought  of teacher-educators’ work, in guiding teacher-students during their practical training? How are these tasks affected by remote learning? What adjustments must be made to meet challenges and to enjoy opportunities under these conditions?

Self-study enables teacher-educators to learn by critically reflecting on their practical experience (Samaras, 2002; LaBoskey, 2004; Kitchen et al., 2020). Therefore, this approach was appropriate, given my wish to retrospectively examine the choices I made in the case under discussion, and thus improve my work (Kitchen, 2020). A self-study based on a single case (Poyas, 2016) allows the practitioner to focus the reflective gaze on a unique educational situation and to attempt to encompass its total complexity. To enhance the study’s trustworthiness (LaBoskey, 2004), I consulted formal documents, including the school-counselor's role description and instructions for educators concerning recognition of warning signs from teenagers. I also used personal texts written during the event: WhatsApp messages from Lian to Amy and from Amy to me. I requested and received IRB approval to use these (under pseudonyms of course) and to interview the adult participants. To enhance the study’s interactivity (LaBoskey, 2004), I interviewed the two figures who shared my experience: Amy, the preservice teacher, and Rona, the school counselor. Due to the lockdown, interviews were performed via Zoom, recorded, and transcribed. Both interviews lasted approximately one hour. The interview with the student helped me to include her point of view in my analysis, and the counselor taught me about counselors' role in guiding teachers to recognize signs of dangerous behaviors. The interviews were semi-structured. The pre-planned questions for Amy were: 1. Please tell me about your experience with Lian. 2. Please tell me about your relationship with Lian before the case. 3. In your opinion, what made Lian choose you as the teacher to turn to for help? 4. What made you recognize Lian's message as requiring special care? 5. What did you learn from the case? The pre-planned questions for Rona were: 1. What are the ‘red’ signs of danger from teenage students? 2.What guidance do subject-matter teachers receive around this subject? 3. How are all these issues affected by social distancing? Additional questions came up during both interviews. To analyze the data, I conducted open and preliminary coding. Across these three relationships (teacher – high-school student, teacher – counselor, and preservice teacher–PI)., I spotted two dimensions: working in normal conditions and working in the unique situation of remote learning. The three relationships on two dimensions gave me six categories. Finally, I turned to a critical friend who could offer an alternative point of view on the data.

The chain of support that was activated in the event included three dyadic relations: teacher–pupil, teacher–counselor, and preservice teacher–PI. Analysis of the three relationships led me to highlight two objectives of teacher-education: integration of SEL within subject-matter contents to guide and support teacher-students in their relationships with their pupils; and good integration of preservice teachers into team relations with school staff during practical training. The two issues are one: good handling of team relations is one of the conditions that allows SEL to be integrated into regular work and during periods of high risk. Remote learning was recognized as a loss of opportunity to establish a supportive teacher–pupil relationship. However, the pandemic also gave teachers and teacher educators new opportunities for social communication in digital channels that are sometimes more intimate and safer. we need further research to establish a solid foundation for these insights. First, there should be an evaluation of how PCK, SEL, and team relations are treated in teacher education programs. Second, we must try to integrate them into holistic programs and then accompany these trials with research. In both cases, there should be a focus not only on the experiences of the lecturers and PIs but also on the learning experiences and impressions of the teacher-students. Concerning remote learning I suggest that teacher-educators, as other educators, should recognize three aspects of teaching in conditions of social distancing: the greater need for emotional support, the unique obstacles to giving support, and the new ways to overcome these obstacles. Finally, we should embrace the new possibilities that digital channels offer us for creating intimacy and accessibility in our relationships with our students.

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