On facing one's students: The relevance of Emmanuel Levinas to teaching in times of Covid?19

In this article I show the relevance of Emmanuel Levinas’ notion primordial teaching for understanding why online cannot adequately mimic face-to-face teaching. will argue that current Covid-19 pandemic shows us being in immediacy embodied presence one's students is intimately intertwined with responsive to needs students, which highlights not only transmission intellectual knowledge and skills but first foremost an ethical attunement suffering Other. Levinas argues its essence a relation between unique individuals; uniqueness originates individual's unconditional responsibility each every other human being. This non-mediated sensitivity Other; openness precedes freedom conscious choice person. claim jeopardised education, makes it harder teacher attune student. The risk we run face Other remains ‘plastic’, more difficult specific students. should concentrate on enabling also invest creating environment intimacy enables responsiveness genuine contact.