Families worried about the impending impact of COVID on students

Back-to-school nervousness may have a different meaning in the COVID age.

After more than a year of pandemic disruption, families are heading into the next school year worried about the impending impact of COVID on students, according to the National Child Health Survey from CS Mott Children’s Hospital of the ‘University of Michigan.

Topping the list for many: a possible repetition of the virtual school, school delay and problems connecting with friends as well as the desire to know the vaccination rates of teachers and students to feel safer.

COVID has wreaked havoc on the school experience of many families over the past year, with parents and children facing unpredictable changes in the learning environment and new social, emotional and academic challenges. Our report suggests that these experiences left a mark on students and families, influencing their views and concerns about the upcoming school year. “

Sarah Clark, MPH, Co-director of the Mott survey

The nationally representative Mott poll report is based on responses from 1,669 parents with at least one child between the ages of 7 and 18.

COVID concerns persist until next school year

For many children and teens, back to school last year meant starting a new class at kitchen tables and meeting classmates and teachers on screens. For others, the school year has come with plexi glass dividers in classrooms, office lunches and COVID exposure quarantines.

But these transitions impacted students differently in different ways, the survey suggests. More than half of parents judge that at least one aspect of the 2020-2021 school year is worse than the previous year – 25% on academic performance, 36% on relations with teachers, 40% on impact on relationships with other students and 32% for general attitude.

Meanwhile, a third of parents cited at least one area that was better for their child during the pandemic: 24% for academic performance, 19% for relationships with teachers, 14% for relationships with peers and 17 % for attitudes towards school.

However, parents whose child had mostly attended virtual school rated more aspects of the last school year as worse than parents whose child had little virtual school. Twenty-six percent of parents also say their child is worried about having to do a virtual school again – a justified concern as epidemics resulting from the contagious Delta variant are already prompting some schools to revert to virtual formats.

“Establishing a successful virtual learning environment has been a challenge for many families. This may have been especially true for those with technical barriers, students with special needs, and those whose home environment did not provide quiet and comfortable spaces to learn, ”said Clark.

“For some children, the decrease in the level of interaction with teachers also required more supervision or help from parents throughout the school day, which could be particularly difficult for those who work for them. – even at home. “

Outlook for the start of the 2021-2022 school year

In addition to concerns about returning to virtual learning, parents say that their child’s worries about the new school year also involve feeling comfortable with larger groups of children (24%), d ” being late for studies (22%) and getting along with friends (22%).

“It is likely that many children will need the extra time and support to catch up in some academic areas that they have not fully understood in the last school year,” Clark said, suggesting that parents to ask teachers for suggestions on additional work.

“Some children and adolescents who may have avoided social anxieties or conflict during virtual school may also need support to return to mainstream school in person,” she added.

Parents interviewed noted that the challenges of the 2020-21 school year were more difficult due to increased stress – theirs and that of their child – as well as uncertainty about how to implement it. virtual learning.

Yet in the future, many are confident that they will know how to help their child succeed in school in the coming year (51%), bounce back when things don’t go well (47%) and dealing with peer issues (44%).

Many children can have a positive outlook as well, with 41% of parents saying their child is more enthusiastic about the 2021-2022 school year while 16% are less enthusiastic and 43% feel the same.

62% of parents would feel safer with higher school vaccination rates

As COVID cases rise again in parts of the country, around three in five parents of high school and high school students also say their child would feel safer if most students and teachers were vaccinated against the virus. COVID. And most families want to know how many are not vaccinated.

But only one in five say this information would affect their decision to have their child attend school in person.

“Many families would feel safer knowing their school has a high immunization rate,” Clark said.

“But some may think that the potential negative impacts of not attending school in person outweigh the risks of unvaccinated people. Parents may also believe that they can minimize this risk by having their child immunized against the disease. COVID. “

She suggested parents and students ask questions about their school’s COVID mitigation measures, so they know what to expect and how to prepare. Many experts and organizations, including the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics, recommend universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status, as well as other preventive measures. strategies.

“Parents will want to learn more about school policies related to masks and social distancing, and then talk with their child about how to navigate the school environment to feel as safe as possible,” Clark said.