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Something that’s mostly missing from slew of news stories on Ss academically suffering and failing in virtual learning is how much is remote learning vs. learning in a pandemic. Even if all schools reopened, are we sending the same Ss (emotionally/psychologically) back to bldgs.?
When ppl talk about reopening schools as returning to regular schooling, does that assume kids coming back are the same kids mentally/emotionally that left in early-March? And I don’t mean what was lost academically via online learning; I mean how they’ve changed as ppl/learners.
When anxiety/depression/other downsides of remote school are cited, is that erased merely by kids returning to in-person? Living during this pandemic is traumatic/disruptive. We talk about this a lot regarding adults. So why do we think anxiety dissipates b/c Ss back in bldgs?
Even if you accept the argument that in-person learning is ideal or preferable for kids, I don’t hear the issue of learning in a pandemic discussed enough wrt how Ss might be affected mentally/socially/emotionally, especially Ss who are typically used as reason to reopen schools.
If you have students coming from homes where parents lost jobs or where there’s been Covid illness/death, what can we reasonably expect from those students as far as learning gains? It’s not only that they’ve been out of school bldgs + virtual learning = slide. It’s pandemic too.
I suspect—though certainly can’t say for sure—that all Ss returning to school bldgs. may not be enough to overcome the weight of learning in a pandemic. TBD whether some measure of slide continues even in-person. Would welcome input of child psychologist or child dvlpmnt expert.
And I closed replies because I’m not looking for debate on whether schools should be closed/stay closed. I’m genuinely thinking about how this pandemic has changed kids mentally/emotionally/physically/etc. — from our youngest to teens — and whether our expectations are skewed.
