Report: School Closures Hurting Students', Teachers' Mental Health
2021-03-24
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1Public schools in many parts of America have been closed to in-person classes during the COVID-19 crisis.
2Now, there is evidence that the closures are having an effect on the mental health of students.
3The Reuters news agency questioned school officials around the country last month to examine the mental health effects of full or partial school shutdowns.
4The schools were in large and small districts.
5They serve more than 2.2 million students across the United States.
6Of the districts that answered the questions, 74 percent reported several signs of increased mental health issues among students.
7More than half of them reported increases in mental health referrals and counseling.
8Counseling is advice and support that is given to people to help them deal with problems.
9Mental health issues were not only a concern for students.
10Fifty-seven percent of districts reported an increase in teachers and support employees seeking assistance.
11School closures have affected districts in every state.
12In the spring of 2020, all U.S. public schools from kindergarten to 12th grade closed, at least temporarily.
13The goal was to help slow the spread of the new coronavirus.
14Burbio is an internet service that follows school openings.
15Its website said that, in February, 57 percent of students attended public schools that were completely or partially closed.
16Some school leaders, teachers' labor groups and parents still support full or partial school closures.
17They say the closures protect the health of children or prevent community spread.
18Yet research over the last year has shown that public schools following social distancing guidelines usually experience low rates of coronavirus spread.
19Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported on conditions in schools.
20The CDC noted that "the majority of cases that are acquired in the community and are brought into a school setting result in limited spread inside schools" if preventive measures are in place.
21Deadly COVID-19 cases among children make up less than one tenth of one percent of all deaths, the CDC said.
22Of the 36,860 overall child deaths in the past year, 216 involved COVID-19.
23At the beginning of the coronavirus crisis, school closings received little resistance.
24Many parents believed the shutdowns would last a few weeks.
25But closures continued for months and began to affect many students.
26Without regular supervision from schools or parents, some students are on their own.
27Jayme Banks of the Philadelphia Public School District has received a police report almost every week about students since classes went online last year.
28They include involvement in shootings, car accidents and arrests.
29Deadly youth shootings in the city rose from 55 in 2019 to 87 in 2020, and non-deadly shootings increased 72 percent over a four-year average of earlier years.
30That information comes from the Philadelphia Office of the Comptroller.
31Some educators believe fewer incidents would happen were the students in schools.
32One year after school shutdowns began, some parents are becoming increasingly concerned about online classes.
33Siva Raj is a single father of two boys in San Francisco, California.
34He is co-leading a campaign to get new leadership for the school district.
35His older 14-year-old son has lost all desire to learn, he said.
36He often just goes between his bed and computer.
37Raj said about his son, "I feel like I am failing him."
38In cases where children return to the classroom, some parents say they see a change.
39As her children struggled with remote learning, Kate Sullivan Morgan and her husband looked at their finances.
40They saw there was no way they could pay for private schools, which offered in-person teaching, for their two children.
41In the fall, they decided to sell their house in San Francisco and move to Austin, Texas, where their sons could go to public school.
42Since January, both sons have been back in school five days a week.
43"They are back to their old selves," the mother said.
44I'm John Russell.
1Public schools in many parts of America have been closed to in-person classes during the COVID-19 crisis. Now, there is evidence that the closures are having an effect on the mental health of students. 2The Reuters news agency questioned school officials around the country last month to examine the mental health effects of full or partial school shutdowns. 3The schools were in large and small districts. They serve more than 2.2 million students across the United States. 4Of the districts that answered the questions, 74 percent reported several signs of increased mental health issues among students. More than half of them reported increases in mental health referrals and counseling. Counseling is advice and support that is given to people to help them deal with problems. 5Mental health issues were not only a concern for students. Fifty-seven percent of districts reported an increase in teachers and support employees seeking assistance. 6School closures have affected districts in every state. 7In the spring of 2020, all U.S. public schools from kindergarten to 12th grade closed, at least temporarily. The goal was to help slow the spread of the new coronavirus. 8Burbio is an internet service that follows school openings. Its website said that, in February, 57 percent of students attended public schools that were completely or partially closed. 9Some school leaders, teachers' labor groups and parents still support full or partial school closures. They say the closures protect the health of children or prevent community spread. Yet research over the last year has shown that public schools following social distancing guidelines usually experience low rates of coronavirus spread. 10Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported on conditions in schools. The CDC noted that "the majority of cases that are acquired in the community and are brought into a school setting result in limited spread inside schools" if preventive measures are in place. 11Deadly COVID-19 cases among children make up less than one tenth of one percent of all deaths, the CDC said. Of the 36,860 overall child deaths in the past year, 216 involved COVID-19. 12Supervision needed 13At the beginning of the coronavirus crisis, school closings received little resistance. Many parents believed the shutdowns would last a few weeks. But closures continued for months and began to affect many students. Without regular supervision from schools or parents, some students are on their own. 14Jayme Banks of the Philadelphia Public School District has received a police report almost every week about students since classes went online last year. They include involvement in shootings, car accidents and arrests. Deadly youth shootings in the city rose from 55 in 2019 to 87 in 2020, and non-deadly shootings increased 72 percent over a four-year average of earlier years. That information comes from the Philadelphia Office of the Comptroller. 15Some educators believe fewer incidents would happen were the students in schools. 16One year after school shutdowns began, some parents are becoming increasingly concerned about online classes. Siva Raj is a single father of two boys in San Francisco, California. He is co-leading a campaign to get new leadership for the school district. His older 14-year-old son has lost all desire to learn, he said. He often just goes between his bed and computer. 17Raj said about his son, "I feel like I am failing him." 18In cases where children return to the classroom, some parents say they see a change. As her children struggled with remote learning, Kate Sullivan Morgan and her husband looked at their finances. They saw there was no way they could pay for private schools, which offered in-person teaching, for their two children. 19In the fall, they decided to sell their house in San Francisco and move to Austin, Texas, where their sons could go to public school. Since January, both sons have been back in school five days a week. 20"They are back to their old selves," the mother said. 21I'm John Russell. 22Benjamin Lesser, M. B. Pell and Kristina Cooke reported on this story for Reuters. John Russell adapted if for Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 23_____________________________________________________________ 24Words in This Story 25district - n. an area or region containing the schools that a school board is in charge of 26referral - n. the act of sending someone to another person or place for treatment, help, advice, etc. 27acquire - v. to get (something) : to come to own (something) 28self - n. the person that someone normally or truly is - used to describe the way someone acts or feels