Inventive pedagogies and social solidarity: The work of community-based adult educators during COVID-19 in British Columbia, Canada

The societal lockdown imposed in Canada in March 2020 to stem the spread of COVID-19 severed key points of connection for low-income Canadians who rely upon schools, libraries and even fast-food chains for internet connectivity. This has had dire implications for timely access to vital information and resources, and has revealed the extent to which women, transgender and racialised communities are bearing the brunt of the pandemic’s effects. This article describes a study that investigated the pandemic-related work of community-based adult educators in the ethno-culturally diverse Canadian province of British Columbia. Interviews were conducted with 18 educators who were working on the “front lines” of the pandemic, to document their support of low-income and newcomer communities, to understand how these educators responded in terms of pedagogies and strategies, and to map how these pedagogies and practices might be leveraged for more equitable relationships in post-pandemic community-based education. The authors found that the educators developed a range of inventive and dynamic pedagogies oriented to social solidarity and to taking up intersectional oppressions. These “pandemic pedagogies” may contribute to more equitable and inclusive social–technology relationships in a post-pandemic future.