The Effects of the COVID Pandemic According to a Survey of School Counselors

Source: Photo by Manny Becerra via Unsplash

By Sam Piha

During the last year we have posted many LIAS blogs on the impact of the COVID pandemic on afterschool programs but we have not written about how young people’s behaviors have revealed the impacts of the pandemic.

We want to call your attention to a survey published by the New York Times in April that polled 362 school counselors nationwide who described many students as “frozen, socially and emotionally, at the age they were when the pandemic started.” 

“American schoolchildren’s learning loss in the pandemic isn’t just in reading and math. It’s also in social and emotional skills — those needed to make and keep friends; participate in group projects; and cope with frustration and other emotions. Nearly all the counselors, 94 percent, said their students were showing more signs of anxiety and depression than before the pandemic. Eighty-eight percent said students were having more trouble regulating their emotions. And almost three-quarters said they were having more difficulty solving conflicts with friends.” – authors, Claire Cain Miller and Bianca Pallaro, New York Times

Below we share quotes from the survey. We invite you to share your comments on what you are seeing in the afterschool setting. Send your comments to info@temescalassociates.com.

        

        “The number of students with chronic attendance issues is much higher than pre-pandemic.” - Jess Firestone, Buckman Elementary School, Portland, Or. 

        “Cyberbullying behaviors are through the roof! We deal with this almost on a daily basis.” - Amy Riley, Mercer County Intermediate School, Harrodsburg, Ky.

        “So much self-harm and suicide ideation.” - Briana Smith, Everett High School, Everett, Wash. 

Source: Photo by Callum Skelton via Unsplash

        “Kids are struggling to make friends, and when there is a conflict, they aren’t sure how to work through it.” - Jennifer Schlatter, Southeast Elementary, Brighton, Colo. 

        “Teamwork skills are almost nonexistent.” - Emily Fain-Lynch, Green Magnet Academy, Knoxville, Tenn. 

        “Students are less bought in to school, less excited about life after high school.” - Ria Ferich, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Austin, Texas 

        “Kids are more impulsive, less controlled, and struggle with emotional regulation.” - Joy Sparrey, Gilbert Intermediate School, Gilbert, Iowa

More Time in School, or Quality Learning Experiences?

By Sam Piha

In our previous blogs, we’ve followed the dialogue regarding extended learning opportunities and a longer school day. A debate on this issue, featuring Geoffrey Canada and others, was featured in the New York Times series, Room For Debate.

We believe that introducing the Learning in Afterschool Principles should be the focus of any efforts to expand the school day.