2020 has undoubtedly been a stressful year for many across our society. With uncertainty making planning for the future difficult, almost half (45%) of the UK population had felt anxious or worried in the last 2 weeks of August. To what extent has this impacted learning? The implications of the virus have also meant online learning has been moved to centre stage, which clearly may have impacted the quality of learning children have received.
We’re working with non-executive CEO of the Learning Alliance and former Ofsted inspector David Hermitt to gather information to pinpoint exactly what the impact has been.
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Let’s continue our discussion into how the pandemic could be impacting the learning potential of pupils.
A child’s school day is usually their most sociable time, especially on their breaks and lunchtimes. Many older children also commute to school with their friends and have an opportunity to talk and interact then. Due to the lockdown, children were forced to miss out on this time which they probably took for granted!
SchoolDash’s report states: “Feelings of loneliness were widespread especially among older pupils. Up to Year 8, around a third of respondents report feeling lonely “a bit” or “very often”, but for Years 12 and 13 this proportion was more than half, with 20-25% saying that they “very often” feel lonely. Based on these responses, we estimate that 800,000-900,000 pupils at state schools in England may be feeling lonely “very often”.”
With this feeling of loneliness, were children still capable to learn to their best?
Many pupils rely on schools to aid them with their mental health issues. In-house school counsellors and teachers expertly trained in safeguarding are important in the lives of countless pupils and throughout the lockdown, they will have been missed during lockdown and even now, operate in limited ways.
SchoolDash’s recent report wrote: “Secondary pupils are much more likely to say that their school has not provided sufficient wellbeing and mental health support, with around 20% of respondents in Years 9-12 saying “not really” or “not at all”.
“Many children have said that they felt generally upset about the situation, while around 10-15% said that they lack sufficient personal space and about 5-10% of most year groups reported being uncomfortable at home”
Many children felt disconnected with their studies and with general life during lockdown. This can often resort to toxic behaviour, where children misbehave as a novelty. Without proper discipline and teaching this can become a serious problem which can lead to disruption in and out of the classroom.
Some key statistics from SchoolDash’s report are as follows:
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