COVID-19 and the teacher’s voice: self-perception and contributions of speech therapy to voice and communication during the pandemic

Abstract

We aimed to analyze the vocal self-perception of Brazilian teachers and their communication needs, vocal signs and symptoms, and voice-related lifestyles during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic and, based on this information, to develop guidance materials intended for dissemination to these teachers and the general community. METHODS: An online questionnaire designed for this survey was distributed via the researchers' networks and was available for completion by any teacher, except those who were not working at the time. There were 1,253 teachers from all over Brazil, of both sexes, covering a wide age range, working at different levels of education, and most with more than ten years of experience. Descriptive and inferential analyses of the data were performed. RESULTS: On comparing the prepandemic period with the current one, participants indicated voice improvements. In contrast, they presented symptoms such as dry throat, effort in addressing remote classes, hoarseness after classes, and difficulties with the use of headphones, among others. They further indicated stress, general fatigue, impact of the pandemic on mental health, and the overlapping of many home tasks with professional tasks. Some smoked, and others hydrated insufficiently. CONCLUSION: Although teachers generally noticed voice improvements during the pandemic, a proportion of them perceived worsening of voices. Many indicated several factors in which speech-language pathologists could guide them with the aim of improving performance and comfort during remote and hybrid classes, an initiative that will positively impact not only their voice and communication but also their quality of life.

Voice symptoms in teachers during distance teaching: a survey during the COVID-19 pandemic in Finland

“…While the cause remains unknown, these significant differences might suggest distance teaching as a potential solution for teachers with vocal symptoms in certain situations. Nemr et al showed in their questionnaire study (between July and October 2020) on Brazilian teachers working in various levels and fields of education that vocal self-perception improved during the pandemic compared with the pre-pandemic period [ 24 ].…”

University teacher’s speech and self-presentation in e-learning and distance professional communication

“…And although research data by Avi Besser, Sari Lotem et al [8], Katia Nemr, Marcia Simões-Zenari et al [9] mentioned above show that a small part of teachers experienced discomfort associated with the functioning of the voice during remote learning, we believe that still a very short time has passed after the intensive participation of teachers in online learning and the data may change upon repeated research.…”

“…2) to record online classes, high-sensitivity microphones and webcams should be used, which will reduce the load on the teacher's voice; in addition, given that sometimes it is required to do several takes, the teacher should start recording the lecture rested, and his vocal tract should also be relaxed and in a healthy state [9,10];…”

“…4) fixed changes in the teachers' voice quality and uncomfortable feelings in the vocal tract: the data received by the scientists in different countries during the pandemic are controversial. When Svetlana Kuzina et al supposes that online lecture allows to preserve teacher's voice without straining vocal chords [1], other researchers have received results demonstrating worsening of voice quality of some part of teachers [8,9]. Though according to the research conducted by Avi Besser, Sari Lotem, and Virgil Zeigler-Hill, only 12% of teachers felt worsening of their voice during pandemic, whereas 58% did not experience any change in their voice quality [8], the teachers cited the following symptoms during the pandemic: dry throat (43%); general feeling of tiredness (27%); more frequent drinking of four to eight glasses of water per day (42%).…”

“…To this it should be added that there is a specialized interdisciplinary scientific journal "Journal of Voice" [7], focused on the study of the structure of the vocal tract, various issues related to voice control, maintaining its functioning at the level of professional requirements, as well as determining the role of voice in life of the representatives of different professions. However, the period of lockdown and the subsequent remote training set the task of ensuring a sufficiently highquality sound of the teacher's speech, and as it turned out, the problems in this area are not so much related to technical issues of tuning, for example, microphones, but to the particular difficulties of teacher's voice functioning in the distance mode [8][9].…”