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COVID-19’s Effect On Education By Devin Soohoo

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WELCOME TEACHERS, PARENTS AND CHILDREN!!! This website is here to inform you of how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected our way of learning. This topic is

important because it affects everyone (teachers, parents and children). This website is designed to help you understand the

impact that the recent crisis has had on our educational learning/teaching.

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Home About Science Facts Theories Activities References Science Behind the Topic

As schools across the US make the decision to shut down for the rest of the academic year, students and teachers continue to undergo a crash course in remote learning. The pandemic disrupted the education system so abruptly. Teachers and students to figure out how to adapt to a new learning environment on the fly. Teachers and students have more difficulty reaching out to each other online especially since students tend to leave their cameras off and emails aren’t always ideal for quick responses. The pandemic has been hard on children and there have been increased depression and anxiety among children and their parents.

Valerie Strauss mentions in her Washington Post article, when frightening or threatening situations occur too frequently (such as COVID-19, the lockdown and sudden shift to remote learning), or when they are not mitigated by sufficient protective factors, the hormonal response can become dysregulated and toxic. Also, when a stress response becomes toxic, it can result in decreased performance. Students usually raise their hands or walk over to their teacher’s desk when they need help with their work. In an online learning environment, however, students may have to fend for themselves if they don’t understand the material. Strauss (2019)

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Home About Science Facts Theories Activities References Cultural Relevence

Within every learning environment there is a culture that influences all the other components. In most learning environments, culture is often considered even beyond the consciousness of learners or even teachers. Whether culture is a good or bad influence in a learning environment will depend on whether you share or reject the values and beliefs of the dominant culture.

As technologies allow us to develop new learning environments, instructors now have a rare opportunity consciously to create a culture that can support those values and beliefs that they consider to be important for today’s learners. The pandemic created an opportunity for educators to rethink their approach to online learning and explore how this educational environment can expand access while increasing and building on diversity.

With the shift to online education for students and teachers, we created a new sense of belonging, community, and culture in the classroom, the greatest challenge has long been a sense of disconnection, given that they are separated from campus life and activities. Looking past the pandemic, we can bring cultural content to light, overcome biases, and actually build on diversity. We can design new learning platforms for our course offerings and increase access to education.

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Home About Science Facts Theories Activities References Various Developmental Theories Another massive consequence of distance learning is how it has impacted the mental health of students. Nearly 3 in 10 parents said that their child was already “experiencing harm to their mental health” because of closures. Bjorklund’s article, “A Metatheory for Cognitive Development” states that w early environmental deprivation affects the development of particular parts of the brain. Anxiety and mental health issues can also have an impact on entire families. Students may act out, seclude themselves, and not communicate with their families as much. If students and schools are to continue surviving and succeeding through the foreseeable future, then there needs to be a large increase in the communication that students receive. Bjorklund (2018)

Bronfenbrenner recognized the multiple aspects of a developing child’s life that affects the child. He looked beyond individual development, considered wider influencing factors and the context of development. Because the five systems are interrelated, the influence of one system on a child’s development depends on its relationship with the others. Based on Bronfenbrenner’s theory, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are barely able to interact with those in their Microsystems (Schools, friends, family, health services etc.), which is the very first level beyond the individuals themselves. Bronfenbrenner (1993).

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Home About Science Facts Theories Activities References There are many ways for teachers and parents to engage with children remotely during the pandemic. virtual activities can be used for specific well-being lessons or advisory classes, or can be woven into other curricula you are teaching, such as English, Art, Humanities, and Physical Education. One activity can be: Positive primer: to energize your students at the start of class to kickstart learning, prompt them to think about their well-being in that moment, get them socially connected online, and get their brain focused for learning.More activities can be found on this site:

https://www.connectionsacademy.com/support/resourc es/article/coronavirus-and-teaching-from-home-ten-way s-to-engage-remotely

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Home About Science Facts Theories Activities References

References Bjorklund, D. (2018). A Metatheory for Cognitive Development (or “Piaget is Dead” Revisited)

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1993). Ecological Models of Human Development

Strauss, V. (2019). The Washington Post: The Effect Chronic Stress Has On Children At School — and Why Policymakers Should Care

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