covid 19 responsive school essay writing in english

Paragraph Writing on Covid 19

Ai generator.

COVID-19, caused by the coronavirus, significantly impacted global health and daily life. Action plans focused on prevention, treatment, and vaccination. Some sought religious exemptions from mandates. A health thesis statement might explore the pandemic’s effects on mental health. The tone is informative and serious. This paragraph highlights the comprehensive response to COVID-19.

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Short Paragraph on Covid-19

Covid-19 is a global pandemic caused by the novel coronavirus. It has significantly impacted daily life, with governments worldwide implementing lockdowns, social distancing, and mask mandates to curb the virus’s spread. The pandemic has highlighted the importance of healthcare systems and the need for vaccines. It has also emphasized global cooperation and resilience in facing unprecedented challenges.

Medium Paragraph on Covid-19

Covid-19, caused by the novel coronavirus, has had a profound impact on the world since its outbreak. The pandemic led to widespread lockdowns, social distancing measures, and mandatory mask-wearing to prevent the virus’s spread. Healthcare systems were overwhelmed, emphasizing the need for robust medical infrastructure and preparedness. The development and distribution of vaccines became a global priority, showcasing the importance of scientific research and international cooperation. Economies faced significant challenges, with businesses closing and unemployment rates rising. Despite these hardships, the pandemic also brought communities together, highlighting resilience, adaptability, and the critical role of healthcare workers in combating the crisis.

Long Paragraph on Covid-19

Covid-19, caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, emerged in late 2019 and rapidly spread across the globe, leading to an unprecedented pandemic. The virus’s high transmission rate prompted governments worldwide to implement stringent measures such as lockdowns, social distancing, and mask mandates to control its spread. These measures, while necessary, significantly disrupted daily life, impacting economies, education, and social interactions. Healthcare systems were strained, underscoring the need for better preparedness and robust medical infrastructure. The rapid development and global distribution of vaccines became a beacon of hope, demonstrating the power of scientific collaboration and innovation. The pandemic also highlighted the disparities in healthcare access and the importance of public health initiatives. Despite the immense challenges, communities showed resilience and adaptability, finding new ways to connect and support each other. The dedication of healthcare workers and the collective effort to combat the virus underscored the importance of global solidarity. Covid-19 has reshaped our world, teaching valuable lessons about preparedness, the significance of science, and the strength of human resilience in the face of adversity.

Tone-wise Paragraph Examples on Covid-19

Formal tone.

Covid-19, caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, represents an unprecedented global health crisis. The pandemic has led to widespread implementation of public health measures such as lockdowns, social distancing, and mandatory mask usage to mitigate the virus’s transmission. Healthcare systems worldwide faced significant strain, highlighting the critical need for robust medical infrastructure and emergency preparedness. The rapid development and distribution of vaccines have been pivotal in controlling the spread of the virus, underscoring the importance of scientific research and international cooperation. The pandemic has also revealed existing disparities in healthcare access and emphasized the necessity of coordinated global public health strategies to effectively manage such crises.

Informal Tone

Covid-19 has really shaken things up since it started spreading in late 2019. Caused by a new coronavirus, it led to lockdowns, social distancing, and everyone wearing masks. Daily life changed a lot, with schools and businesses shutting down, and everyone trying to stay safe. The healthcare system was hit hard, showing us just how important it is to be prepared. Vaccines were developed super quickly, giving us hope to get back to normal. Even though it was tough, people came together, supported each other, and adapted to the new normal. Covid-19 taught us a lot about resilience and the importance of healthcare.

Persuasive Tone

Covid-19, caused by the novel coronavirus, has highlighted the urgent need for better healthcare systems and global cooperation. The pandemic led to widespread lockdowns, social distancing, and mask mandates, disrupting daily life and economies. Our healthcare systems were overwhelmed, underscoring the critical need for robust medical infrastructure. The rapid development of vaccines showcased the power of scientific research and international collaboration. Now, more than ever, it is crucial to support and strengthen our healthcare systems, invest in scientific research, and promote global cooperation to ensure we are better prepared for future health crises. Let’s learn from this pandemic and build a stronger, healthier world together.

Reflective Tone

Reflecting on the impact of Covid-19, it’s clear that the pandemic has reshaped our world in profound ways. The novel coronavirus led to unprecedented global lockdowns, social distancing, and mask mandates, dramatically altering daily life. Our healthcare systems were tested like never before, revealing both strengths and weaknesses. The rapid development and distribution of vaccines highlighted the importance of scientific innovation and international cooperation. Amid the challenges, communities showed remarkable resilience and adaptability, finding new ways to connect and support one another. Covid-19 has taught us valuable lessons about preparedness, the significance of healthcare, and the power of human resilience in the face of adversity.

Inspirational Tone

Covid-19 has been a challenging journey, but it has also shown the incredible strength and resilience of humanity. The novel coronavirus led to global lockdowns, social distancing, and mask mandates, changing our daily lives dramatically. Despite these hardships, the rapid development and distribution of vaccines brought hope and showcased the power of scientific innovation and global cooperation. Communities came together, supporting each other and adapting to new realities. Healthcare workers became heroes, showing unparalleled dedication and bravery. Covid-19 has taught us the importance of unity, resilience, and the ability to overcome even the toughest challenges. Together, we can build a brighter, healthier future.

Optimistic Tone

Covid-19, caused by the novel coronavirus, brought significant challenges, but it also highlighted the resilience and adaptability of people worldwide. The pandemic led to lockdowns, social distancing, and mask-wearing, changing our daily routines. Despite these difficulties, the rapid development of vaccines brought hope and demonstrated the power of scientific progress. Communities came together, supporting one another and finding new ways to connect. Healthcare workers showed incredible dedication, and the world witnessed the strength of human spirit. Covid-19 has been a tough journey, but it also reinforced our ability to overcome adversity and work towards a healthier, more connected future.

Urgent Tone

The Covid-19 pandemic, caused by the novel coronavirus, demands our immediate attention and action. Since its outbreak, the virus has led to widespread lockdowns, social distancing, and mandatory mask usage, significantly disrupting daily life. Healthcare systems have been overwhelmed, highlighting the urgent need for better preparedness and robust medical infrastructure. The rapid development of vaccines has been crucial, but we must continue to prioritize public health measures and global cooperation to combat this crisis. Now is the time to invest in healthcare, support scientific research, and work together to overcome this pandemic. Immediate action is essential to protect lives and prevent further devastation.

Word Count-wise Paragraph Examples on Covid-19

Covid-19, caused by the novel coronavirus, has had a profound impact on the world since its outbreak. The pandemic led to widespread lockdowns, social distancing measures, and mandatory mask-wearing to prevent the virus’s spread. Healthcare systems were overwhelmed, emphasizing the need for robust medical infrastructure and preparedness. The development and distribution of vaccines became a global priority, showcasing the importance of scientific research and international cooperation. Economies faced significant challenges, with businesses closing and unemployment rates rising. Despite these hardships, the pandemic also brought communities together, highlighting resilience, adaptability, and the critical role of healthcare workers in combating the crisis. The rapid development and distribution of vaccines became a beacon of hope, demonstrating the power of scientific collaboration and innovation.

Covid-19, caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, emerged in late 2019 and rapidly spread across the globe, leading to an unprecedented pandemic. The virus’s high transmission rate prompted governments worldwide to implement stringent measures such as lockdowns, social distancing, and mask mandates to control its spread. These measures, while necessary, significantly disrupted daily life, impacting economies, education, and social interactions. Healthcare systems were strained, underscoring the need for better preparedness and robust medical infrastructure. The rapid development and global distribution of vaccines became a beacon of hope, demonstrating the power of scientific collaboration and innovation. The pandemic also highlighted the disparities in healthcare access and the importance of public health initiatives. Despite the immense challenges, communities showed resilience and adaptability, finding new ways to connect and support each other.

Covid-19, caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, emerged in late 2019 and rapidly spread across the globe, leading to an unprecedented pandemic. The virus’s high transmission rate prompted governments worldwide to implement stringent measures such as lockdowns, social distancing, and mask mandates to control its spread. These measures, while necessary, significantly disrupted daily life, impacting economies, education, and social interactions. Healthcare systems were strained, underscoring the need for better preparedness and robust medical infrastructure. The rapid development and global distribution of vaccines became a beacon of hope, demonstrating the power of scientific collaboration and innovation. The pandemic also highlighted the disparities in healthcare access and the importance of public health initiatives. Despite the immense challenges, communities showed resilience and adaptability, finding new ways to connect and support each other. The dedication of healthcare workers and the collective effort to combat the virus underscored the importance of global solidarity. Covid-19 has reshaped our world, teaching valuable lessons about preparedness, the significance of science, and the strength of human resilience in the face of adversity. The pandemic emphasized the need for robust healthcare systems, scientific innovation, and global cooperation. Despite the challenges, the collective resilience and adaptability of people worldwide have shown the strength of the human spirit in overcoming adversity.

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Essay On Covid-19: 100, 200 and 300 Words

• Updated on  
• Apr 30, 2024

COVID-19, also known as the Coronavirus, is a global pandemic that has affected people all around the world. It first emerged in a lab in Wuhan, China, in late 2019 and quickly spread to countries around the world. This virus was reportedly caused by SARS-CoV-2. Since then, it has spread rapidly to many countries, causing widespread illness and impacting our lives in numerous ways. This blog talks about the details of this virus and also drafts an essay on COVID-19 in 100, 200 and 300 words for students and professionals. 

Table of Contents

• 1 Essay On COVID-19 in English 100 Words
• 2 Essay On COVID-19 in 200 Words
• 3 Essay On COVID-19 in 300 Words
• 4 Short Essay on Covid-19

Essay On COVID-19 in English 100 Words

COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, is a global pandemic. It started in late 2019 and has affected people all around the world. The virus spreads very quickly through someone’s sneeze and respiratory issues.

COVID-19 has had a significant impact on our lives, with lockdowns, travel restrictions, and changes in daily routines. To prevent the spread of COVID-19, we should wear masks, practice social distancing, and wash our hands frequently. 

People should follow social distancing and other safety guidelines and also learn the tricks to be safe stay healthy and work the whole challenging time. 

Also Read: National Safe Motherhood Day 2023

Essay On COVID-19 in 200 Words

COVID-19 also known as coronavirus, became a global health crisis in early 2020 and impacted mankind around the world. This virus is said to have originated in Wuhan, China in late 2019. It belongs to the coronavirus family and causes flu-like symptoms. It impacted the healthcare systems, economies and the daily lives of people all over the world. 

The most crucial aspect of COVID-19 is its highly spreadable nature. It is a communicable disease that spreads through various means such as coughs from infected persons, sneezes and communication. Due to its easy transmission leading to its outbreaks, there were many measures taken by the government from all over the world such as Lockdowns, Social Distancing, and wearing masks. 

There are many changes throughout the economic systems, and also in daily routines. Other measures such as schools opting for Online schooling, Remote work options available and restrictions on travel throughout the country and internationally. Subsequently, to cure and top its outbreak, the government started its vaccine campaigns, and other preventive measures. 

In conclusion, COVID-19 tested the patience and resilience of the mankind. This pandemic has taught people the importance of patience, effort and humbleness. 

Also Read : Essay on My Best Friend

Essay On COVID-19 in 300 Words

COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, is a serious and contagious disease that has affected people worldwide. It was first discovered in late 2019 in Cina and then got spread in the whole world. It had a major impact on people’s life, their school, work and daily lives. 

COVID-19 is primarily transmitted from person to person through respiratory droplets produced and through sneezes, and coughs of an infected person. It can spread to thousands of people because of its highly contagious nature. To cure the widespread of this virus, there are thousands of steps taken by the people and the government. 

Wearing masks is one of the essential precautions to prevent the virus from spreading. Social distancing is another vital practice, which involves maintaining a safe distance from others to minimize close contact.

Very frequent handwashing is also very important to stop the spread of this virus. Proper hand hygiene can help remove any potential virus particles from our hands, reducing the risk of infection. 

In conclusion, the Coronavirus has changed people’s perspective on living. It has also changed people’s way of interacting and how to live. To deal with this virus, it is very important to follow the important guidelines such as masks, social distancing and techniques to wash your hands. Getting vaccinated is also very important to go back to normal life and cure this virus completely.

Also Read: Essay on Abortion in English in 650 Words

Short Essay on Covid-19

Please find below a sample of a short essay on Covid-19 for school students:

Also Read: Essay on Women’s Day in 200 and 500 words

to write an essay on COVID-19, understand your word limit and make sure to cover all the stages and symptoms of this disease. You need to highlight all the challenges and impacts of COVID-19. Do not forget to conclude your essay with positive precautionary measures.

Writing an essay on COVID-19 in 200 words requires you to cover all the challenges, impacts and precautions of this disease. You don’t need to describe all of these factors in brief, but make sure to add as many options as your word limit allows.

The full form for COVID-19 is Corona Virus Disease of 2019.

Related Reads

Hence, we hope that this blog has assisted you in comprehending with an essay on COVID-19. For more information on such interesting topics, visit our essay writing page and follow Leverage Edu.

Simran Popli

An avid writer and a creative person. With an experience of 1.5 years content writing, Simran has worked with different areas. From medical to working in a marketing agency with different clients to Ed-tech company, the journey has been diverse. Creative, vivacious and patient are the words that describe her personality.

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Covid 19 Essay in English

Essay on Covid -19: In a very short amount of time, coronavirus has spread globally. It has had an enormous impact on people's lives, economy, and societies all around the world, affecting every country. Governments have had to take severe measures to try and contain the pandemic. The virus has altered our way of life in many ways, including its effects on our health and our economy. Here are a few sample essays on ‘CoronaVirus’.

100 Words Essay on Covid 19

200 words essay on covid 19, 500 words essay on covid 19.

COVID-19 or Corona Virus is a novel coronavirus that was first identified in 2019. It is similar to other coronaviruses, such as SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, but it is more contagious and has caused more severe respiratory illness in people who have been infected. The novel coronavirus became a global pandemic in a very short period of time. It has affected lives, economies and societies across the world, leaving no country untouched. The virus has caused governments to take drastic measures to try and contain it. From health implications to economic and social ramifications, COVID-19 impacted every part of our lives. It has been more than 2 years since the pandemic hit and the world is still recovering from its effects.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the world has been impacted in a number of ways. For one, the global economy has taken a hit as businesses have been forced to close their doors. This has led to widespread job losses and an increase in poverty levels around the world. Additionally, countries have had to impose strict travel restrictions in an attempt to contain the virus, which has resulted in a decrease in tourism and international trade. Furthermore, the pandemic has put immense pressure on healthcare systems globally, as hospitals have been overwhelmed with patients suffering from the virus. Lastly, the outbreak has led to a general feeling of anxiety and uncertainty, as people are fearful of contracting the disease.

My Experience of COVID-19

I still remember how abruptly colleges and schools shut down in March 2020. I was a college student at that time and I was under the impression that everything would go back to normal in a few weeks. I could not have been more wrong. The situation only got worse every week and the government had to impose a lockdown. There were so many restrictions in place. For example, we had to wear face masks whenever we left the house, and we could only go out for essential errands. Restaurants and shops were only allowed to operate at take-out capacity, and many businesses were shut down.

In the current scenario, coronavirus is dominating all aspects of our lives. The coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc upon people’s lives, altering the way we live and work in a very short amount of time. It has revolutionised how we think about health care, education, and even social interaction. This virus has had long-term implications on our society, including its impact on mental health, economic stability, and global politics. But we as individuals can help to mitigate these effects by taking personal responsibility to protect themselves and those around them from infection.

Effects of CoronaVirus on Education

The outbreak of coronavirus has had a significant impact on education systems around the world. In China, where the virus originated, all schools and universities were closed for several weeks in an effort to contain the spread of the disease. Many other countries have followed suit, either closing schools altogether or suspending classes for a period of time.

This has resulted in a major disruption to the education of millions of students. Some have been able to continue their studies online, but many have not had access to the internet or have not been able to afford the costs associated with it. This has led to a widening of the digital divide between those who can afford to continue their education online and those who cannot.

The closure of schools has also had a negative impact on the mental health of many students. With no face-to-face contact with friends and teachers, some students have felt isolated and anxious. This has been compounded by the worry and uncertainty surrounding the virus itself.

The situation with coronavirus has improved and schools have been reopened but students are still catching up with the gap of 2 years that the pandemic created. In the meantime, governments and educational institutions are working together to find ways to support students and ensure that they are able to continue their education despite these difficult circumstances.

Effects of CoronaVirus on Economy

The outbreak of the coronavirus has had a significant impact on the global economy. The virus, which originated in China, has spread to over two hundred countries, resulting in widespread panic and a decrease in global trade. As a result of the outbreak, many businesses have been forced to close their doors, leading to a rise in unemployment. In addition, the stock market has taken a severe hit.

Effects of CoronaVirus on Health

The effects that coronavirus has on one's health are still being studied and researched as the virus continues to spread throughout the world. However, some of the potential effects on health that have been observed thus far include respiratory problems, fever, and coughing. In severe cases, pneumonia, kidney failure, and death can occur. It is important for people who think they may have been exposed to the virus to seek medical attention immediately so that they can be treated properly and avoid any serious complications. There is no specific cure or treatment for coronavirus at this time, but there are ways to help ease symptoms and prevent the virus from spreading.

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Writing about COVID-19 in a college admission essay

by: Venkates Swaminathan | Updated: September 14, 2020

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For students applying to college using the CommonApp, there are several different places where students and counselors can address the pandemic’s impact. The different sections have differing goals. You must understand how to use each section for its appropriate use.

The CommonApp COVID-19 question

First, the CommonApp this year has an additional question specifically about COVID-19 :

Community disruptions such as COVID-19 and natural disasters can have deep and long-lasting impacts. If you need it, this space is yours to describe those impacts. Colleges care about the effects on your health and well-being, safety, family circumstances, future plans, and education, including access to reliable technology and quiet study spaces. Please use this space to describe how these events have impacted you.

This question seeks to understand the adversity that students may have had to face due to the pandemic, the move to online education, or the shelter-in-place rules. You don’t have to answer this question if the impact on you wasn’t particularly severe. Some examples of things students should discuss include:

• The student or a family member had COVID-19 or suffered other illnesses due to confinement during the pandemic.
• The candidate had to deal with personal or family issues, such as abusive living situations or other safety concerns
• The student suffered from a lack of internet access and other online learning challenges.
• Students who dealt with problems registering for or taking standardized tests and AP exams.

Jeff Schiffman of the Tulane University admissions office has a blog about this section. He recommends students ask themselves several questions as they go about answering this section:

• Are my experiences different from others’?
• Are there noticeable changes on my transcript?
• Am I aware of my privilege?
• Am I specific? Am I explaining rather than complaining?
• Is this information being included elsewhere on my application?

If you do answer this section, be brief and to-the-point.

Counselor recommendations and school profiles

Second, counselors will, in their counselor forms and school profiles on the CommonApp, address how the school handled the pandemic and how it might have affected students, specifically as it relates to:

• Grading scales and policies
• Graduation requirements
• Instructional methods
• Schedules and course offerings
• Testing requirements
• Your academic calendar
• Other extenuating circumstances

Students don’t have to mention these matters in their application unless something unusual happened.

Writing about COVID-19 in your main essay

Write about your experiences during the pandemic in your main college essay if your experience is personal, relevant, and the most important thing to discuss in your college admission essay. That you had to stay home and study online isn’t sufficient, as millions of other students faced the same situation. But sometimes, it can be appropriate and helpful to write about something related to the pandemic in your essay. For example:

• One student developed a website for a local comic book store. The store might not have survived without the ability for people to order comic books online. The student had a long-standing relationship with the store, and it was an institution that created a community for students who otherwise felt left out.
• One student started a YouTube channel to help other students with academic subjects he was very familiar with and began tutoring others.
• Some students used their extra time that was the result of the stay-at-home orders to take online courses pursuing topics they are genuinely interested in or developing new interests, like a foreign language or music.

Experiences like this can be good topics for the CommonApp essay as long as they reflect something genuinely important about the student. For many students whose lives have been shaped by this pandemic, it can be a critical part of their college application.

Want more? Read 6 ways to improve a college essay , What the &%$! should I write about in my college essay , and Just how important is a college admissions essay? .

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How to Write About the Impact of the Coronavirus in a College Essay

The global impact of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, means colleges and prospective students alike are in for an admissions cycle like no other. Both face unprecedented challenges and questions as they grapple with their respective futures amid the ongoing fallout of the pandemic.

Colleges must examine applicants without the aid of standardized test scores for many -- a factor that prompted many schools to go test-optional for now . Even grades, a significant component of a college application, may be hard to interpret with some high schools adopting pass-fail classes last spring due to the pandemic. Major college admissions factors are suddenly skewed.

"I can't help but think other (admissions) factors are going to matter more," says Ethan Sawyer, founder of the College Essay Guy, a website that offers free and paid essay-writing resources.

College essays and letters of recommendation , Sawyer says, are likely to carry more weight than ever in this admissions cycle. And many essays will likely focus on how the pandemic shaped students' lives throughout an often tumultuous 2020.

[ Read: How to Write a College Essay. ]

But before writing a college essay focused on the coronavirus, students should explore whether it's the best topic for them.

Writing About COVID-19 for a College Application

Much of daily life has been colored by the coronavirus. Virtual learning is the norm at many colleges and high schools, many extracurriculars have vanished and social lives have stalled for students complying with measures to stop the spread of COVID-19.

"For some young people, the pandemic took away what they envisioned as their senior year," says Robert Alexander, dean of admissions, financial aid and enrollment management at the University of Rochester in New York. "Maybe that's a spot on a varsity athletic team or the lead role in the fall play. And it's OK for them to mourn what should have been and what they feel like they lost, but more important is how are they making the most of the opportunities they do have?"

That question, Alexander says, is what colleges want answered if students choose to address COVID-19 in their college essay.

But the question of whether a student should write about the coronavirus is tricky. The answer depends largely on the student.

"In general, I don't think students should write about COVID-19 in their main personal statement for their application," Robin Miller, master college admissions counselor at IvyWise, a college counseling company, wrote in an email.

"Certainly, there may be exceptions to this based on a student's individual experience, but since the personal essay is the main place in the application where the student can really allow their voice to be heard and share insight into who they are as an individual, there are likely many other topics they can choose to write about that are more distinctive and unique than COVID-19," Miller says.

[ Read: What Colleges Look for: 6 Ways to Stand Out. ]

Opinions among admissions experts vary on whether to write about the likely popular topic of the pandemic.

"If your essay communicates something positive, unique, and compelling about you in an interesting and eloquent way, go for it," Carolyn Pippen, principal college admissions counselor at IvyWise, wrote in an email. She adds that students shouldn't be dissuaded from writing about a topic merely because it's common, noting that "topics are bound to repeat, no matter how hard we try to avoid it."

Above all, she urges honesty.

"If your experience within the context of the pandemic has been truly unique, then write about that experience, and the standing out will take care of itself," Pippen says. "If your experience has been generally the same as most other students in your context, then trying to find a unique angle can easily cross the line into exploiting a tragedy, or at least appearing as though you have."

But focusing entirely on the pandemic can limit a student to a single story and narrow who they are in an application, Sawyer says. "There are so many wonderful possibilities for what you can say about yourself outside of your experience within the pandemic."

He notes that passions, strengths, career interests and personal identity are among the multitude of essay topic options available to applicants and encourages them to probe their values to help determine the topic that matters most to them -- and write about it.

That doesn't mean the pandemic experience has to be ignored if applicants feel the need to write about it.

Writing About Coronavirus in Main and Supplemental Essays

Students can choose to write a full-length college essay on the coronavirus or summarize their experience in a shorter form.

To help students explain how the pandemic affected them, The Common App has added an optional section to address this topic. Applicants have 250 words to describe their pandemic experience and the personal and academic impact of COVID-19.

[ Read: The Common App: Everything You Need to Know. ]

"That's not a trick question, and there's no right or wrong answer," Alexander says. Colleges want to know, he adds, how students navigated the pandemic, how they prioritized their time, what responsibilities they took on and what they learned along the way.

If students can distill all of the above information into 250 words, there's likely no need to write about it in a full-length college essay, experts say. And applicants whose lives were not heavily altered by the pandemic may even choose to skip the optional COVID-19 question.

"This space is best used to discuss hardship and/or significant challenges that the student and/or the student's family experienced as a result of COVID-19 and how they have responded to those difficulties," Miller notes. Using the section to acknowledge a lack of impact, she adds, "could be perceived as trite and lacking insight, despite the good intentions of the applicant."

To guard against this lack of awareness, Sawyer encourages students to tap someone they trust to review their writing , whether it's the 250-word Common App response or the full-length essay.

Experts tend to agree that the short-form approach to this as an essay topic works better, but there are exceptions. And if a student does have a coronavirus story that he or she feels must be told, Alexander encourages the writer to be authentic in the essay.

"My advice for an essay about COVID-19 is the same as my advice about an essay for any topic -- and that is, don't write what you think we want to read or hear," Alexander says. "Write what really changed you and that story that now is yours and yours alone to tell."

Sawyer urges students to ask themselves, "What's the sentence that only I can write?" He also encourages students to remember that the pandemic is only a chapter of their lives and not the whole book.

Miller, who cautions against writing a full-length essay on the coronavirus, says that if students choose to do so they should have a conversation with their high school counselor about whether that's the right move. And if students choose to proceed with COVID-19 as a topic, she says they need to be clear, detailed and insightful about what they learned and how they adapted along the way.

"Approaching the essay in this manner will provide important balance while demonstrating personal growth and vulnerability," Miller says.

Pippen encourages students to remember that they are in an unprecedented time for college admissions.

"It is important to keep in mind with all of these (admission) factors that no colleges have ever had to consider them this way in the selection process, if at all," Pippen says. "They have had very little time to calibrate their evaluations of different application components within their offices, let alone across institutions. This means that colleges will all be handling the admissions process a little bit differently, and their approaches may even evolve over the course of the admissions cycle."

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11 Meaningful Writing Assignments Connected to the Pandemic

Writing gives students an outlet to express their feelings and connect with others during this unsettling time in their lives.

With students currently at home because of the pandemic, it’s helpful to provide learning opportunities that get them talking about what’s happening in the world with trusted adults and peers.

These ideas for home assignments build connection and help our young people process this difficult experience while developing their writing skills.

11 Writing Assignments for the Current Moment

1. Interview senior members of the community: With our older community members at higher risk, hearing their stories has increasing significance. Generate interview questions with your students, and conduct a sample interview as a model.

Students can interview family members, senior members of the school staff, or others through handwritten letters, phone calls, or video chats. When students write up and share their interviews with the class, they will get a broader, more nuanced view of older generations’ experiences.

2. Folding stories: In the traditional version of this activity, one person writes a sentence or two on a piece of paper and then folds the paper so that only the last word or phrase can be seen. The next person continues the story for a few sentences before again hiding all but the last word or phrase and then passing the paper on.

To do this remotely, set up a randomized list of all of your students. The first student sends you their contribution, and you send the last phrase of that to the next name on the list. Compile all the contributions in order in a Google Doc to create a single story. Once everyone has contributed, share the whole story with the class.

The format may allow students an imaginative outlet for anxious thoughts and predictions about the future, and the result is almost guaranteed to be hilarious and inspiring to both eager and reluctant writers.

3. Dialogue journals: A journal in which a teacher and student write back and forth to each other is an ongoing communication that helps teachers build relationships with each student while they model writing and observe students’ progressing skills. Start this off by writing a first short entry for each of your students in separate Google Docs, choosing topics you already know they’re interested in and offering personal details about yourself.

You can ask each student to write something once a week—and you’ll respond to each entry, so this does entail a time commitment on your part. The benefit in relationship-building, so difficult to do in distance learning, makes this worth the work.

4. Student-to-student letters: Organize pen pals or small letter-writing groups. Ask students to write back and forth to one or more peers using provided prompts and sample questions. Teach students to consider their audience and to keep a written dialogue going over several letters as they write to different peers. Encourage students to include self-created activities in their letters to peers: They might make a crossword puzzle using the class vocabulary words, create a maze, or share a recipe or a silly joke.

5. Write to an author: A professional writer may be a great correspondent for a young fan, offering insight into key aspects of a favorite book. Follow #WriteToAnAuthor on Twitter for access to mailing addresses of authors who are standing by for letters from young readers. Provide your students with prompts, templates, samples, and feedback to support them in writing thoughtful letters.

6. Adapt a text to reflect current conditions: Lately any story we read or watch can be a painful reminder of how much is changing. Characters are dancing, hugging or shaking hands, and talking to each other in public places. Some students find it comforting to be immersed in that world, but others find these moments upsetting. Assign students the task of rewriting a scene from a story, show, or movie, considering what needs to change for it to be realistic in our current situation but still retain the original essential themes and meaning.

7. Letters to the editor: What do students think about our leaders, policies, and proposed solutions to this pandemic? Guide them through the art of writing a well-crafted letter to the editor, and post submissions on your district, school, or class website, if privacy policies permit that. Give your students guidelines that specify word count, style, and topics, just as official publications do.

8. Student-created blog: Begin by sharing strong examples of student journalism as mentor texts. Invite students to brainstorm ideas for articles and columns. Some students can assume the role of section editors—News, Features, Arts—and others can write articles, take photos, and work on the design and marketing of the website, which students can build using Edublogs .

9. “Slow looking” documentation: Shari Tishman describes “slow looking” as prolonged observation that occurs through all the senses. Students can use a variety of slow looking strategies to observe their setting and sketch or write about their observations. There are seasonal changes to observe, among other things. By practicing slow looking, students may learn to see things they never noticed before. When they share their observations with the class, everyone gains a broader perspective of how the larger environment is changing.

10. Covid-19 comics: The genre of  graphic medicine —which uses comics to explore the physical and emotional impacts of medical conditions—shows that comics can be a good way for students to explore troubling experiences. Share comics related to Covid-19  that engage with the wider implications of the pandemic, such as feeling increased isolation, processing conflicting news, and coping with social distancing or unemployment.

Invite students to explore their experiences through an intentional combination of words and pictures. Make it collaborative by having students write text for a peer’s drawings. Students can use Canva to make comics , or draw them on paper and then take photos to upload to the class learning management system.

11. Pandemic journals: A pandemic journal invites students to process their feelings and document their experience for future generations. To structure the assignment, provide prompts and templates. Suggest to students that they layer in artifacts such as news reports, a note received from a friend or neighbor, a copy of an online school schedule for a day, a snippet of an overheard conversation, or a sketch of a parent hunched over a laptop.

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12 Ideas for Writing Through the Pandemic With The New York Times

A dozen writing projects — including journals, poems, comics and more — for students to try at home.

By Natalie Proulx

The coronavirus has transformed life as we know it. Schools are closed, we’re confined to our homes and the future feels very uncertain. Why write at a time like this?

For one, we are living through history. Future historians may look back on the journals, essays and art that ordinary people are creating now to tell the story of life during the coronavirus.

But writing can also be deeply therapeutic. It can be a way to express our fears, hopes and joys. It can help us make sense of the world and our place in it.

Plus, even though school buildings are shuttered, that doesn’t mean learning has stopped. Writing can help us reflect on what’s happening in our lives and form new ideas.

We want to help inspire your writing about the coronavirus while you learn from home. Below, we offer 12 projects for students, all based on pieces from The New York Times, including personal narrative essays, editorials, comic strips and podcasts. Each project features a Times text and prompts to inspire your writing, as well as related resources from The Learning Network to help you develop your craft. Some also offer opportunities to get your work published in The Times, on The Learning Network or elsewhere.

We know this list isn’t nearly complete. If you have ideas for other pandemic-related writing projects, please suggest them in the comments.

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Coronavirus and schools: Reflections on education one year into the pandemic

Subscribe to the center for universal education bulletin, daphna bassok , daphna bassok nonresident senior fellow - governance studies , brown center on education policy @daphnabassok lauren bauer , lauren bauer fellow - economic studies , associate director - the hamilton project @laurenlbauer stephanie riegg cellini , stephanie riegg cellini nonresident senior fellow - governance studies , brown center on education policy helen shwe hadani , helen shwe hadani former brookings expert @helenshadani michael hansen , michael hansen senior fellow - brown center on education policy , the herman and george r. brown chair - governance studies @drmikehansen douglas n. harris , douglas n. harris nonresident senior fellow - governance studies , brown center on education policy , professor and chair, department of economics - tulane university @douglasharris99 brad olsen , brad olsen senior fellow - global economy and development , center for universal education @bradolsen_dc richard v. reeves , richard v. reeves president - american institute for boys and men @richardvreeves jon valant , and jon valant director - brown center on education policy , senior fellow - governance studies @jonvalant kenneth k. wong kenneth k. wong nonresident senior fellow - governance studies , brown center on education policy.

March 12, 2021

• 11 min read

One year ago, the World Health Organization declared the spread of COVID-19 a worldwide pandemic. Reacting to the virus, schools at every level were sent scrambling. Institutions across the world switched to virtual learning, with teachers, students, and local leaders quickly adapting to an entirely new way of life. A year later, schools are beginning to reopen, the $1.9 trillion stimulus bill has been passed, and a sense of normalcy seems to finally be in view; in President Joe Biden’s speech last night, he spoke of “finding light in the darkness.” But it’s safe to say that COVID-19 will end up changing education forever, casting a critical light on everything from equity issues to ed tech to school financing.

Below, Brookings experts examine how the pandemic upended the education landscape in the past year, what it’s taught us about schooling, and where we go from here.

In the United States, we tend to focus on the educating roles of public schools, largely ignoring the ways in which schools provide free and essential care for children while their parents work. When COVID-19 shuttered in-person schooling, it eliminated this subsidized child care for many families. It created intense stress for working parents, especially for mothers who left the workforce at a high rate.

The pandemic also highlighted the arbitrary distinction we make between the care and education of elementary school children and children aged 0 to 5 . Despite parents having the same need for care, and children learning more in those earliest years than at any other point, public investments in early care and education are woefully insufficient. The child-care sector was hit so incredibly hard by COVID-19. The recent passage of the American Rescue Plan is a meaningful but long-overdue investment, but much more than a one-time infusion of funds is needed. Hopefully, the pandemic represents a turning point in how we invest in the care and education of young children—and, in turn, in families and society.

Congressional reauthorization of Pandemic EBT for  this school year , its  extension  in the American Rescue Plan (including for summer months), and its place as a  central plank  in the Biden administration’s anti-hunger agenda is well-warranted and evidence based. But much more needs to be done to ramp up the program–even  today , six months after its reauthorization, about half of states do not have a USDA-approved implementation plan.

In contrast, enrollment is up in for-profit and online colleges. The research repeatedly finds weaker student outcomes for these types of institutions relative to community colleges, and many students who enroll in them will be left with more debt than they can reasonably repay. The pandemic and recession have created significant challenges for students, affecting college choices and enrollment decisions in the near future. Ultimately, these short-term choices can have long-term consequences for lifetime earnings and debt that could impact this generation of COVID-19-era college students for years to come.

Many U.S. educationalists are drawing on the “build back better” refrain and calling for the current crisis to be leveraged as a unique opportunity for educators, parents, and policymakers to fully reimagine education systems that are designed for the 21st rather than the 20th century, as we highlight in a recent Brookings report on education reform . An overwhelming body of evidence points to play as the best way to equip children with a broad set of flexible competencies and support their socioemotional development. A recent article in The Atlantic shared parent anecdotes of children playing games like “CoronaBall” and “Social-distance” tag, proving that play permeates children’s lives—even in a pandemic.

Tests play a critical role in our school system. Policymakers and the public rely on results to measure school performance and reveal whether all students are equally served. But testing has also attracted an inordinate share of criticism, alleging that test pressures undermine teacher autonomy and stress students. Much of this criticism will wither away with  different  formats. The current form of standardized testing—annual, paper-based, multiple-choice tests administered over the course of a week of school—is outdated. With widespread student access to computers (now possible due to the pandemic), states can test students more frequently, but in smaller time blocks that render the experience nearly invisible. Computer adaptive testing can match paper’s reliability and provides a shorter feedback loop to boot. No better time than the present to make this overdue change.

A third push for change will come from the outside in. COVID-19 has reminded us not only of how integral schools are, but how intertwined they are with the rest of society. This means that upcoming schooling changes will also be driven by the effects of COVID-19 on the world around us. In particular, parents will be working more from home, using the same online tools that students can use to learn remotely. This doesn’t mean a mass push for homeschooling, but it probably does mean that hybrid learning is here to stay.

I am hoping we will use this forced rupture in the fabric of schooling to jettison ineffective aspects of education, more fully embrace what we know works, and be bold enough to look for new solutions to the educational problems COVID-19 has illuminated.

There is already a large gender gap in education in the U.S., including in  high school graduation rates , and increasingly in college-going and college completion. While the pandemic appears to be hurting women more than men in the labor market, the opposite seems to be true in education.

Looking through a policy lens, though, I’m struck by the timing and what that timing might mean for the future of education. Before the pandemic, enthusiasm for the education reforms that had defined the last few decades—choice and accountability—had waned. It felt like a period between reform eras, with the era to come still very unclear. Then COVID-19 hit, and it coincided with a national reckoning on racial injustice and a wake-up call about the fragility of our democracy. I think it’s helped us all see how connected the work of schools is with so much else in American life.

We’re in a moment when our long-lasting challenges have been laid bare, new challenges have emerged, educators and parents are seeing and experimenting with things for the first time, and the political environment has changed (with, for example, a new administration and changing attitudes on federal spending). I still don’t know where K-12 education is headed, but there’s no doubt that a pivot is underway.

• First, state and local leaders must leverage commitment and shared goals on equitable learning opportunities to support student success for all.
• Second, align and use federal, state, and local resources to implement high-leverage strategies that have proven to accelerate learning for diverse learners and disrupt the correlation between zip code and academic outcomes.
• Third, student-centered priority will require transformative leadership to dismantle the one-size-fits-all delivery rule and institute incentive-based practices for strong performance at all levels.
• Fourth, the reconfigured system will need to activate public and parental engagement to strengthen its civic and social capacity.
• Finally, public education can no longer remain insulated from other policy sectors, especially public health, community development, and social work.

These efforts will strengthen the capacity and prepare our education system for the next crisis—whatever it may be.

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Student essays reflect Covid-19 struggles

What’s on the minds these days from students at Como Park Senior High School?

Here are essays from juniors Jude Breen, Keira Schumacher and Logan Becker who wrote these essays in late February for English teacher Elizabeth Boyer’s CIS Writing Studio class.

What A Blessing

by Jude Breen

When I reflect on the 2020 football season, I always find myself concurring with the word gratitude.

Every day at practice, Coach Scull would have us take a minute. We would sit there in perfect silence and bask in the opportunity and blessing that we were given in being able to have a season. Not only because it was nice to be doing something normal, but also for the chance to build these lifelong friendships and memories that we all will still think back on decades down the road.

I am constantly thinking back to our game against Johnson. Como hasn’t beat Johnson in football for over 10 years and Johnson likes to let us know that. There was a lot of pressure going into the game. We knew we were a good team with many weapons, but we really had to prove ourselves in this matchup.

The game was on a Saturday morning, and it was the first real cold day we had all year. The type of cold where your toes are numb and your snot is frozen inside of your nose . . . not very pretty.

Despite the crisp wind on our faces, we were fired up.

Our Cougars scored first. I threw a corner route in the end zone to Stone who tracked the rock-hard, bruising football for a touchdown. There’s no feeling quite like your first touchdown. The defense stood strong all game and only allowed one touchdown.

We went into overtime tied 6-6. The strong bodies of our defensive lineman protected the tie, then out came our offense. We direct snapped the ball to Stone and he follows his bodyguard blockers into the end zone, reaching with every inch he has to get the ball over the goal line.

And then, pandemonium ensues. We stormed the field in a sea of black. Johnson players were on their knees questioning how in the world they let Como beat them. The adrenaline running through my body made me forget all about the blistering wind chill, as Coach Scull did his victory dance in our team circle.

Once the celebration is over, the grind started all over again in preparation for the upcoming game. The next Monday we were back on our beautiful turf, again in perfect silence, processing how grateful we are for what we have done so far and what is to come.

I will never forget this season. Hard work truly does pay off, and I have unconditional gratitude for my brothers on my team, and the role models I found in the coaching staff.

A Little Bit of Happiness

By Keira Schumacher

Quarantine has been a hard, boring, slow and tiring time for every­one. Being stuck in the same place day after day has made every moment feel the same. It’s almost been a year now since quarantine has started, so I’m sure that everyone has felt this repetition of days just like I have.

By now it’s very hard to find things that can separate the days for me to make them different or unique. I have hobbies that I can do at home. I draw and paint, play video games. But at some point you get sick of those too.

After months of everything being the same, I knew I had to do something to make my time in quarantine a little bit better. I didn’t think that doing little things, like cleaning my room, walking my dogs, or even just taking time to listen to music would make such an impact on my days.

Taking time for yourself and doing something solely for you and no one else have made my days a little better. When your days start to melt together without being able to separate them, you can get stuck in a rut without being able to get out. That’s happened to me a few times. Sometimes the rut lasts only a few days, but sometimes it can last weeks.

When I’m stuck in this place of repetition it demotivates me to do anything. It feels that anything I do doesn’t really matter because everything will be the same the next day and the day after that. It can be very hard for me to clear my head and start to actively do things rather than just floating through the days.

Some things that have helped me get through these ruts are making a good cup of coffee in the morning, or doing some laundry to be able to wear your favorite sweatshirt again.

I’ve been lucky enough to be able to go downhill skiing this winter, which is the biggest factor for helping me clear my mind and resetting. Being able to breath the cold crisp air on the hills as I’m speeding down. Being able to enjoy skiing with my friends has been one of the main reasons I’m not in a constant rut.

You have to work to find happiness and fulfillment in the little things.

Struggles with online learning

By Logan Becker

Onerous and loneliness are two words I would use to describe the past nine months each and every one of us has experienced. Our main issue, and quite frankly the most obvious one, would be the coronavirus.

It’s been exceptionally difficult on most of us, and the days feel as if they just keep getting worse and worse. Hearing about a vaccine was a lighthearted and a very hopeful sign that everything will turn out okay.

But, social distancing at this point has been nothing but repetitive. I fully understand it’s a safety precaution to keep everyone safe from this pandemic, but it still hurts to know I’m unable to see my friends daily.

I go through my day expecting the same thing consistently over and over again through this pandemic. It’s quite literally the same: Wake up, brush my teeth, take a shower, eat some breakfast, feed my dogs, check in on my little brother, take out the trash, make some lunch, do the dishes, do my laundry, spend time with family and go to sleep. It seems as if spending time at home has been more time consuming than my regular day life before the pandemic. And it’s not entirely easy using my precious free time to focus on school.

Online schooling is more distracting than one might think, surrounded by things you love to do, and having to ignore it to get the things more important done. I’ve always had a difficulty during normal school to get my homework done when I get home from school because I get distracted and it’s really my only time during the day to do what I want to do. But it seems as if that’s how my daily routine has wound up to be. It’s unfortunate to say the least, and overall has been stressful.

I’ve talked with other students about this over Google meets, and we’ve all come to the same consensus that we lack tons of motivation when doing school at home.

Additionally, I find nearly no time to step away from this and haven’t given myself much time to just relax and enjoy myself without the weight of school on my chest. . . . I’m quite fully sure there are hundreds of more students who have dealt with this monstrous difficulty, and it’s been a very strenuous position to be in.

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Read these 12 moving essays about life during coronavirus

Artists, novelists, critics, and essayists are writing the first draft of history.

by Alissa Wilkinson

The world is grappling with an invisible, deadly enemy, trying to understand how to live with the threat posed by a virus . For some writers, the only way forward is to put pen to paper, trying to conceptualize and document what it feels like to continue living as countries are under lockdown and regular life seems to have ground to a halt.

So as the coronavirus pandemic has stretched around the world, it’s sparked a crop of diary entries and essays that describe how life has changed. Novelists, critics, artists, and journalists have put words to the feelings many are experiencing. The result is a first draft of how we’ll someday remember this time, filled with uncertainty and pain and fear as well as small moments of hope and humanity.

• The Vox guide to navigating the coronavirus crisis

At the New York Review of Books, Ali Bhutto writes that in Karachi, Pakistan, the government-imposed curfew due to the virus is “eerily reminiscent of past military clampdowns”:

Beneath the quiet calm lies a sense that society has been unhinged and that the usual rules no longer apply. Small groups of pedestrians look on from the shadows, like an audience watching a spectacle slowly unfolding. People pause on street corners and in the shade of trees, under the watchful gaze of the paramilitary forces and the police.

His essay concludes with the sobering note that “in the minds of many, Covid-19 is just another life-threatening hazard in a city that stumbles from one crisis to another.”

Writing from Chattanooga, novelist Jamie Quatro documents the mixed ways her neighbors have been responding to the threat, and the frustration of conflicting direction, or no direction at all, from local, state, and federal leaders:

Whiplash, trying to keep up with who’s ordering what. We’re already experiencing enough chaos without this back-and-forth. Why didn’t the federal government issue a nationwide shelter-in-place at the get-go, the way other countries did? What happens when one state’s shelter-in-place ends, while others continue? Do states still under quarantine close their borders? We  are  still one nation, not fifty individual countries. Right?

• A syllabus for the end of the world

Award-winning photojournalist Alessio Mamo, quarantined with his partner Marta in Sicily after she tested positive for the virus, accompanies his photographs in the Guardian of their confinement with a reflection on being confined :

The doctors asked me to take a second test, but again I tested negative. Perhaps I’m immune? The days dragged on in my apartment, in black and white, like my photos. Sometimes we tried to smile, imagining that I was asymptomatic, because I was the virus. Our smiles seemed to bring good news. My mother left hospital, but I won’t be able to see her for weeks. Marta started breathing well again, and so did I. I would have liked to photograph my country in the midst of this emergency, the battles that the doctors wage on the frontline, the hospitals pushed to their limits, Italy on its knees fighting an invisible enemy. That enemy, a day in March, knocked on my door instead.

In the New York Times Magazine, deputy editor Jessica Lustig writes with devastating clarity about her family’s life in Brooklyn while her husband battled the virus, weeks before most people began taking the threat seriously:

At the door of the clinic, we stand looking out at two older women chatting outside the doorway, oblivious. Do I wave them away? Call out that they should get far away, go home, wash their hands, stay inside? Instead we just stand there, awkwardly, until they move on. Only then do we step outside to begin the long three-block walk home. I point out the early magnolia, the forsythia. T says he is cold. The untrimmed hairs on his neck, under his beard, are white. The few people walking past us on the sidewalk don’t know that we are visitors from the future. A vision, a premonition, a walking visitation. This will be them: Either T, in the mask, or — if they’re lucky — me, tending to him.

Essayist Leslie Jamison writes in the New York Review of Books about being shut away alone in her New York City apartment with her 2-year-old daughter since she became sick:

The virus.  Its sinewy, intimate name. What does it feel like in my body today? Shivering under blankets. A hot itch behind the eyes. Three sweatshirts in the middle of the day. My daughter trying to pull another blanket over my body with her tiny arms. An ache in the muscles that somehow makes it hard to lie still. This loss of taste has become a kind of sensory quarantine. It’s as if the quarantine keeps inching closer and closer to my insides. First I lost the touch of other bodies; then I lost the air; now I’ve lost the taste of bananas. Nothing about any of these losses is particularly unique. I’ve made a schedule so I won’t go insane with the toddler. Five days ago, I wrote  Walk/Adventure!  on it, next to a cut-out illustration of a tiger—as if we’d see tigers on our walks. It was good to keep possibility alive.

At Literary Hub, novelist Heidi Pitlor writes about the elastic nature of time during her family’s quarantine in Massachusetts:

During a shutdown, the things that mark our days—commuting to work, sending our kids to school, having a drink with friends—vanish and time takes on a flat, seamless quality. Without some self-imposed structure, it’s easy to feel a little untethered. A friend recently posted on Facebook: “For those who have lost track, today is Blursday the fortyteenth of Maprilay.” ... Giving shape to time is especially important now, when the future is so shapeless. We do not know whether the virus will continue to rage for weeks or months or, lord help us, on and off for years. We do not know when we will feel safe again. And so many of us, minus those who are gifted at compartmentalization or denial, remain largely captive to fear. We may stay this way if we do not create at least the illusion of movement in our lives, our long days spent with ourselves or partners or families.

• What day is it today?

Novelist Lauren Groff writes at the New York Review of Books about trying to escape the prison of her fears while sequestered at home in Gainesville, Florida:

Some people have imaginations sparked only by what they can see; I blame this blinkered empiricism for the parks overwhelmed with people, the bars, until a few nights ago, thickly thronged. My imagination is the opposite. I fear everything invisible to me. From the enclosure of my house, I am afraid of the suffering that isn’t present before me, the people running out of money and food or drowning in the fluid in their lungs, the deaths of health-care workers now growing ill while performing their duties. I fear the federal government, which the right wing has so—intentionally—weakened that not only is it insufficient to help its people, it is actively standing in help’s way. I fear we won’t sufficiently punish the right. I fear leaving the house and spreading the disease. I fear what this time of fear is doing to my children, their imaginations, and their souls.

At ArtForum , Berlin-based critic and writer Kristian Vistrup Madsen reflects on martinis, melancholia, and Finnish artist Jaakko Pallasvuo’s 2018 graphic novel  Retreat , in which three young people exile themselves in the woods:

In melancholia, the shape of what is ending, and its temporality, is sprawling and incomprehensible. The ambivalence makes it hard to bear. The world of  Retreat  is rendered in lush pink and purple watercolors, which dissolve into wild and messy abstractions. In apocalypse, the divisions established in genesis bleed back out. My own Corona-retreat is similarly soft, color-field like, each day a blurred succession of quarantinis, YouTube–yoga, and televized press conferences. As restrictions mount, so does abstraction. For now, I’m still rooting for love to save the world.

At the Paris Review , Matt Levin writes about reading Virginia Woolf’s novel The Waves during quarantine:

A retreat, a quarantine, a sickness—they simultaneously distort and clarify, curtail and expand. It is an ideal state in which to read literature with a reputation for difficulty and inaccessibility, those hermetic books shorn of the handholds of conventional plot or characterization or description. A novel like Virginia Woolf’s  The Waves  is perfect for the state of interiority induced by quarantine—a story of three men and three women, meeting after the death of a mutual friend, told entirely in the overlapping internal monologues of the six, interspersed only with sections of pure, achingly beautiful descriptions of the natural world, a day’s procession and recession of light and waves. The novel is, in my mind’s eye, a perfectly spherical object. It is translucent and shimmering and infinitely fragile, prone to shatter at the slightest disturbance. It is not a book that can be read in snatches on the subway—it demands total absorption. Though it revels in a stark emotional nakedness, the book remains aloof, remote in its own deep self-absorption.

• Vox is starting a book club. Come read with us!

In an essay for the Financial Times, novelist Arundhati Roy writes with anger about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s anemic response to the threat, but also offers a glimmer of hope for the future:

Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next. We can choose to walk through it, dragging the carcasses of our prejudice and hatred, our avarice, our data banks and dead ideas, our dead rivers and smoky skies behind us. Or we can walk through lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world. And ready to fight for it. 

From Boston, Nora Caplan-Bricker writes in The Point about the strange contraction of space under quarantine, in which a friend in Beirut is as close as the one around the corner in the same city:

It’s a nice illusion—nice to feel like we’re in it together, even if my real world has shrunk to one person, my husband, who sits with his laptop in the other room. It’s nice in the same way as reading those essays that reframe social distancing as solidarity. “We must begin to see the negative space as clearly as the positive, to know what we  don’t do  is also brilliant and full of love,” the poet Anne Boyer wrote on March 10th, the day that Massachusetts declared a state of emergency. If you squint, you could almost make sense of this quarantine as an effort to flatten, along with the curve, the distinctions we make between our bonds with others. Right now, I care for my neighbor in the same way I demonstrate love for my mother: in all instances, I stay away. And in moments this month, I have loved strangers with an intensity that is new to me. On March 14th, the Saturday night after the end of life as we knew it, I went out with my dog and found the street silent: no lines for restaurants, no children on bicycles, no couples strolling with little cups of ice cream. It had taken the combined will of thousands of people to deliver such a sudden and complete emptiness. I felt so grateful, and so bereft.

And on his own website, musician and artist David Byrne writes about rediscovering the value of working for collective good , saying that “what is happening now is an opportunity to learn how to change our behavior”:

In emergencies, citizens can suddenly cooperate and collaborate. Change can happen. We’re going to need to work together as the effects of climate change ramp up. In order for capitalism to survive in any form, we will have to be a little more socialist. Here is an opportunity for us to see things differently — to see that we really are all connected — and adjust our behavior accordingly.  Are we willing to do this? Is this moment an opportunity to see how truly interdependent we all are? To live in a world that is different and better than the one we live in now? We might be too far down the road to test every asymptomatic person, but a change in our mindsets, in how we view our neighbors, could lay the groundwork for the collective action we’ll need to deal with other global crises. The time to see how connected we all are is now.

The portrait these writers paint of a world under quarantine is multifaceted. Our worlds have contracted to the confines of our homes, and yet in some ways we’re more connected than ever to one another. We feel fear and boredom, anger and gratitude, frustration and strange peace. Uncertainty drives us to find metaphors and images that will let us wrap our minds around what is happening.

Yet there’s no single “what” that is happening. Everyone is contending with the pandemic and its effects from different places and in different ways. Reading others’ experiences — even the most frightening ones — can help alleviate the loneliness and dread, a little, and remind us that what we’re going through is both unique and shared by all.

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Student resilience to COVID-19-related school disruptions: The value of historic school engagement

Linda theron.

University of Pretoria, South Africa

Michael Ungar

Resilience Research Centre, Dalhousie University, Canada

Jan Höltge

Associated data.

Supplemental material, sj-docx-1-spi-10.1177_01430343221138785 for Student resilience to COVID-19-related school disruptions: The value of historic school engagement by Linda Theron, Michael Ungar and Jan Höltge in School Psychology International

Does historic school engagement buffer the threats of disrupted schooling – such as those associated with the widespread COVID-19-related school closures – to school engagement equally for female and male high school students? This article responds to that pressing question. To do so, it reports a study that was conducted in 2018 and 2020 with the same sample of South African students ( n  = 172; 66.30% female; average age in 2020: 18.13). A moderated moderation model of the 2018 and 2020 data showed that historic levels of school engagement buffered the negative effects of disrupted schooling on subsequent school engagement ( R ² = .43, β  = −5.09, p  < .05). This protective effect was significant for girl students at moderate and high levels of historic school engagement, but not at lower levels of historic school engagement. Disrupted schooling did not significantly affect school engagement for male students at any level of historic school engagement. In addition, student perceptions of teacher kindness were associated with higher school engagement and having experienced an adverse event at school with lower school engagement. The results point to the importance of facilitating school engagement and enabling school environments – also when schooling is disrupted.

Introduction

Across the globe, the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19) pandemic disrupted schooling during 2020 and 2021. Schools in at least 180 countries closed for varying periods of time ( Azevedo, 2020 ; Lee, 2020 ). Although such school closures were well-intended (i.e., to limit the spread of COVID-19), they were associated with multiple costs to school students’ education, safety, and wellbeing ( de Miranda et al., 2020 ; Van Lancker & Parolin, 2020 ). Even when empirical studies reported limited costs of school closures to students’ mental wellbeing in the short term (e.g., Luthar et al., 2020 ), these studies cautioned that the long-term costs were likely to be substantive. Of additional concern is that school closures could cause students to disengage from schooling and prompt poor long-term outcomes, including challenges to students’ future economic independence and mental wellbeing ( Azevedo, 2020 ; Coker et al., 2020 ; World Bank, 2020 ). While these concerns apply to all students, students with experiences of marginalisation are likely more vulnerable to the costs of school closures ( Dorn et al., 2020 ).

Rather than focus on the costs of school closures to student wellbeing, this article investigates students’ capacity to remain school engaged in the face of COVID-19-related school closures. In specific, it investigates the capacity of a sample of South African high school students ( n  = 172), from a resource-constrained (i.e., marginalised) municipality, to remain school engaged following the closing of their schools in March 2020. It considers what could potentially buffer the negative effects of school closure on school engagement. The attention to buffering or protective factors –– i.e., those factors that facilitate positive outcomes despite exposure to significant stress –– fits with calls to advance child and youth resilience to COVID-19-related stressors ( Dvorsky et al., 2020 ; Holmes et al., 2020 ), also in the school context ( Luthar et al., 2020 ). Children in disadvantaged contexts – such as those living in resource-constrained, marginalised municipalities – are particularly reliant on education to beat the odds of their circumstances ( World Bank, 2020 ), and so it is crucial to better understand and enable/sustain their school engagement in the face of school closures.

School engagement

School engagement, which is considered fundamental to progress at school and/or academic achievement, is defined as a student's involvement in, or commitment to, their schooling ( Fredricks et al., 2004 ). Typically, behavioural, emotional, and cognitive commitment to schooling epitomises school engagement ( Fredricks et al., 2005 ). Put differently, school engagement is demonstrated in a student's school-related behaviour (e.g., actively participating in learning and other school activities); school-related emotion (e.g., appreciating learning opportunities or liking their peers/teacher); and school-related cognitive processes (e.g., being attentive in class or associating new learning with prior learning) ( Fredricks et al., 2004 ; Lam et al., 2014 ; Sinatra et al., 2015 ). As summarised next, multiple factors are associated with a student's capacity for school engagement. Whilst these resources all matter for sustained school engagement, which matter more is likely to vary for specific groups of students in specific contexts at specific points in time ( Wang et al., 2020 ).

Student factors

A student's capacity for school engagement can relate to sociodemographic factors (e.g., race, age, gender; Wang & Eccles, 2012 ). In particular, female gender and non-membership of marginalised racial/ethnic groups are associated with higher levels of school engagement ( Wang et al., 2011 ). While no definitive reason is given for girls being more school engaged, there is speculation that this relates to how girls are socialised ( Roorda et al., 2011 ). However, vulnerable groups of girls (e.g., teenage mothers) might be more likely to disengage in the absence of supports to remain school engaged ( Fredricks et al., 2004 ). Further, personal resources (e.g., grit, self-regulation skills, executive functioning skills, or social functioning) are implicated in a student's capacity to be behaviourally, emotionally, and cognitively invested in their schooling ( Fredricks et al., 2004 ).

Home environment factors

Higher school engagement is positively associated with material resources in the home environment (e.g., education-enabling resources; space to study). It is also positively associated with supportive parenting (e.g., warm caregiving) and parental capacity to scaffold learning tasks at home ( Sharkey et al., 2008 ; Wang & Eccles, 2012 ). Household routine and parental expectations that their children commit to their schooling are similarly enabling (Sharkey et al., 2008).

School context factors

Various school-related resources are associated with higher levels of school engagement (e.g., positive peers; positive classroom climate; Fredricks et al., 2004 ). When students feel safe and accepted at school, they tend to be more engaged in academic and extra-curricular activity ( Bang et al., 2020 ). Teacher-student relationships can be especially pivotal to school engagement. Kind or caring teachers are positively associated with higher school engagement ( Malindi & Machenjedze, 2012 ; Motti-Stefanidi & Masten, 2013 ; Quin, 2017 ; Roorda et al., 2011 ). Similarly, teacher competence (i.e., teachers who teach well) is associated with higher school engagement ( Fredricks et al., 2004 ; Wang et al., 2020 ).

A resource mix

Typically, studies of school engagement point to a mix of resources that draws on strengths within students and their social ecologies ( Fredricks et al., 2004 ). For example, a three-wave longitudinal study with 363 foster children (mean age: 11.30, SD = 3.22) in the Netherlands reported that better grades, no absenteeism, demographics (gender, younger age), and positive parenting predicted higher school engagement ( Goemans et al., 2018 ). Similarly, a two-wave longitudinal study with 714 early adolescents in Korea reported that students who reported high levels of teacher and peer support also reported high levels of current and subsequent school engagement ( Shin & Chang, 2022 ).

The cost of school closures to the resources that inform school engagement

Essentially, COVID-19-related school closures have the potential to disrupt access to the individual, home-, and school-related resources that matter for behavioural, emotional and cognitive engagement in schooling. For instance, COVID-related school closures were associated with significant threats to many students’ physical and mental health, more especially for students from disadvantaged households ( Onyema et al., 2020 ; Rajmil et al., 2021 ). Reduced psychological wellbeing could jeopardise the personal resources (e.g., self-regulation; attentive involvement in learning; social functioning) implicated in higher levels of school engagement. Likewise, for students who depended on school feeding schemes, school closures probably resulted in hunger with negative knock-on effects for personal health and wellbeing resources ( Clark et al., 2020 ). There were also concerns about student exposure to abuse/maltreatment and parental conflict during lockdown and students’ wellbeing, social functioning, and role functioning (e.g., at home/school) ( Clark et al., 2020 ; Rajmil et al., 2021 ). Similarly, COVID-related school closures created substantive stress for many teachers and parents, thereby potentially straining teacher capacity for kindness and competence and parent capacity for warm, supportive caregiving ( Fontanesi et al., 2020 ; Kim & Asbury, 2020 ; Panagouli et al., 2021 ). Even when students were supported to learn remotely while their schools were closed, remote access could not compensate for in-person interaction with supportive peers or stem the boredom and reduced social functioning that many youngsters reported ( Onyema et al., 2020 ).

Thus, in jeopardising student access to the individual, home-, and school-related resources that matter for commitment to schooling, school closure potentiates a direct threat to school engagement. Put differently, lockdown-related interruptions to schooling could lessen students’ behavioural, emotional, and cognitive commitment to schooling, especially for students from marginalised communities ( Onyema et al., 2020 ). For example, a study with a large sample of school students ( n  = 943) and their parents and teachers in rural and disadvantaged parts of Indonesia reported school closure-related threats to school engagement ( Indrawati et al., 2020 ). These included digital resource constraints that stymied student engagement with learning and prompted negative emotion (e.g., anxiety) toward schooling tasks. Students reported difficulty engaging in/completing academic tasks without the support of their teachers/peers. Additionally, economic constraints resulted in some students being engaged in domestic chores or child labour rather than remote learning and related declines in commitment to schooling.

The costs of school closures appear to be higher for girls, possibly because girls are expected to contribute to the running of their households and/or take on care duties ( Clark et al., 2020 ). For instance, girls exposed to the Ebola epidemic and other crises (e.g., economic crises in Ethiopia and Brazil) were more likely to report experiences of abuse and less likely to resume their schooling when schools reopened ( World Bank, 2020 ). Similar trends have been reported during the COVID-19-related school closures ( Coker et al., 2020 ; Molek & Bellizzi, 2022 ), with particular concern voiced for girls in sub-Saharan countries. For them, school closures typically meant heightened involvement in domestic chores and care duties and related disengagement with schooling ( Oppong Asante et al., 2021 ). Further, compared with male students, higher rates of lockdown-related depression and anxiety were reported for female students in America ( Luthar et al., 2020 ), and elsewhere (e.g., Iceland; Halldorsdottir et al., 2021 ; India, Malaysia, Korea, Thailand, Israel, Iran, and Russia; Loades et al., 2020 ). Again, these higher costs to girls might relate to how girls are socialized (e.g., to value relational resources; these resources were typically curtailed during lockdown).

2020. COVID-19-related school closures in South Africa

Shortly after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared COVID-19 a global pandemic in March 2020, South Africa announced a state of emergency that resulted in a stringent, national lockdown with five alert levels (level 5 being the most stringent). It was described as “one of the most rigid and extreme lockdowns announced anywhere in the world” ( Habib, 2020 ). The lockdown prompted school closures. In addition, human movement was curtailed, public gatherings were banned, and all non-essential services disallowed. In short, this meant that from 18 March to 8 June (alert levels 3–5) young people could not go to school, roam their neighbourhood, socialise with their peers, or engage in sport or other extramural activity ( Fouché et al., 2020 ). This was followed by a staggered return to school, with students in Grade 7 and 12 returning first. However, in response to a COVID-19 spike, schools were closed for a second time from 27 July to 24 August 2020.

Although alert levels were adjusted downwards thereafter, public health requirements (e.g., maintenance of physical distance, face-masking) remained mandatory. Thus, even though schools were no longer officially closed, many schools could not accommodate all students simultaneously and so most South African students lost additional contact teaching days ( Soudien et al., 2021 ). Overall, it was estimated that depending on their age and grade, South African students lost between 30 and 59 school days in the 2020 school year ( Timm, 2021 ), or 22%-65% of regular/contact school time ( Spaull & van der Berg, 2020 ; Soudien et al., 2021 ). Further, the reopening of schools did not eliminate high levels of insecurity about when next schools would close or diminish adolescents’ feelings of uncertainty about their present and future ( Gittings et al., 2021 ).

As in other parts of the world, the closure of South Africa's schools generated censure. There was pronounced concern for the nine million South African children who rely on school feeding schemes. The hunger that disrupted access to school feeding schemes would inevitably induce for this vast population of students, led to some labelling school closure “a form of abuse or neglect” ( van Bruwaene et al., 2020 ). Further, given that only a minority of South African students have access to technology ( Spaull & van der Berg, 2020 ), school closure was criticized for its disrespect of children's universal right to education and educational progress ( Wolfson Vorster, 2020 ).

The current study

The current study's aim was to investigate the school engagement of a sample of South African high school students whose schooling was disrupted in the course of 2020, with particular interest in factors that could have protected continued school engagement regardless of how school closures disrupt access to the resources that enable school engagement. In so doing, the study responded to the multiple calls to better understand and advance youth resilience in the face of COVID-19-related challenges ( Dvorsky et al., 2020 ; Holmes et al., 2020 ; Luthar et al., 2020 ). School engagement is frequently associated with the resilience of youth from disadvantaged contexts in South Africa ( Van Breda & Theron, 2018 ). A better understanding of what might support continued school engagement despite the challenges of repeated school closures ( Spaull & van der Berg, 2020 ), is crucial to sustaining that resilience.

The literature on the negative impacts of school closure on the individual, home- and school-related resources that are fundamental to school engagement (e.g., Clark et al., 2020 ; Coker et al., 2020 ; de Miranda et al., 2020 ; Van Lancker & Parolin, 2020 ; World Bank, 2020 ) led us to expect that school engagement would be negatively impacted the longer the duration of disrupted schooling (i.e., number of days since schools were first closed). Simultaneously, this prompted our attention to the possible role of historic school engagement when access to the resources that typically sustain school engagement is jeopardized. However, our reading of the longitudinal studies of school engagement suggested that very little attention has been paid to the role of historic/prior levels of school engagement in predicting subsequent levels of school engagement. Exceptions included a study by Quin and colleagues with 719 Australian adolescents (average age: 16.96; SD  = 0.38); they found that gender (i.e., female), higher prior (i.e., Grade 10) engagement levels, and better prior academic grades predicted higher school engagement in Grade 11. Similarly, prior levels of school engagement, gender, race, and advantaged versus disadvantaged family circumstances predicted student membership in higher behavioral and emotional school engagement trajectories in a study with 1,977 American adolescents ( Li & Lerner, 2011 ). In short, being male, a student of color, and having a less advantaged family background predicted lower behavioral and emotional engagement. Further, Li and Lerner (2011) found that higher school engagement over time predicted better academic, behavioral, and emotional outcomes.

Despite the paucity of studies documenting the role of historic school engagement on subsequent school engagement and achievement ( Li & Lerner, 2011 ; Quin et al., 2018 ), their results let us expect that higher levels of historic school engagement might buffer the negative effects of exposure to disrupted schooling. On the contrary, lower levels of historic school engagement might be a risk factor for school engagement during school disruption. However, following broad understandings that gender is related to school engagement (i.e., girls are likely to report higher school engagement than boys; Li & Lerner, 2011 ; Wang & Eccles, 2012 ), the buffering effects of lower/higher levels of historic school engagement might be dependent on student gender.

Overall, therefore, the main aim of the current study was to investigate if lower levels of historic school engagement increase, and higher levels of historic school engagement decrease, the expected negative effect of the duration of COVID-related school closures on present school engagement, and if these effects differ for female and male students. We hypothesized that (H1) compared with male students, female students would show a stronger negative effect of school disruption on present school engagement at lower levels of historic school engagement. We also expected that (H2) there would be no significant difference between female and male students in the effect of school disruption on present school engagement at higher levels of historic school engagement.

Furthermore, we included multiple meaningful covariates in the analyses. Given the ‘resource mix’ that informs school engagement (e.g., Fredricks et al., 2004 ; Quin, 2017 ; Quin et al., 2018 ; Sharkey et al., 2008 ), we anticipated that resources at the level of individual students (i.e., mental health [fewer symptoms of depression]; intact social and role functioning), their households (harmonious functioning; family support; warm parenting), and school (teacher kindness; teacher competence; safe school environment) might matter for school engagement, even when access to schooling is disrupted.

The sample was drawn from the Resilient Youth in Stressed Environments (RYSE) study. As detailed elsewhere ( Ungar et al., 2021 ), RYSE investigated the multisystem resources that supported youth resilience over time in Canadian and South African communities stressed by economic and ecological challenges. Given the marginalization of African youth in the school engagement literature ( Lam et al., 2014 ), the sample reported on in this paper is from RYSE South Africa (SA).

RYSE SA was conducted in a semi-urban town and neighbouring township. Both are in a resource-constrained municipality in one of South Africa's poorer provinces (i.e., Mpumalanga). Most households in this municipality report limited resources. Of relevance to school closures, 80.5% of households in this municipality have a television but only 24.3% have a computer; 62.3% report no internet access ( StatsSA, 2011 ). Similar statistics are reported for most South African households and that could account for the national education department's use of television broadcasts to facilitate remote learning (also in COVID-19 times) ( Spaull & van der Berg, 2020 ).

The principal RYSE investigators’ Institutional Review Boards provide ethical clearance. A Community Advisory Panel (CAP) that was made up of local adults and adolescents guided the study and facilitated participant recruitment ( Ungar et al., 2021 ). Recruitment criteria were defined as: (a) residence/school attendance/employment in the town/township affiliated to RYSE; (b) 14- to 24-years-old; and (c) English literacy (English is the medium of instruction in most South African high schools and South Africa's official language of communication). Following prior resilience studies in South Africa ( Van Rensburg et al., 2019 ) and the advice of the CAP, trained research assistants (RAs) administered the survey to small groups of participants. The RAs read an item aloud before participants self-completed it. This method was repeated in 2020, except that survey administration was one-on-one (as regulated by COVID-19 procedures). Each participant (and their parent/legal guardian if participants were younger than 18) consented in writing prior to survey completion and received a supermarket voucher for their time ($15 in 2018 and $30 in 2020).

The reliabilities of the scales can be found in Table 1 .

Table 1.

Sample characteristics, reliabilities, and Spearman correlations.

Note . N  = 172. ω = Omega coefficient for reliability. SE = school engagement, DSFSC = Days since first school closure at participation, PC = Parental/Caregiver. * p  < .05. # Spearman-Brown coefficient for reliability of two items.

Student/individual factors

Student/individual factors included demographic factors. Participants self-reported their sex (male/female) and age. Student/individual factors also included school engagement, mental health (depression symptoms), and social and role functioning.

School engagement was assessed via the 32-item School Engagement Scale (SES; Lam et al., 2014 ). The original, cross-cultural study showed sufficient internal consistency of the overall scale (α = .78), sufficient concurrent validity ( Lam et al., 2014 ), and that a second-order model fits the scale best with three subscales (i.e., affective, behavioral, cognitive) and one overarching school engagement factor. Sample items for each subscale include: ‘I am happy to be at this school’ (affective); ‘If I have trouble understanding a problem, I go over it again until I understand it’ (behavioral); and ‘When I study, I figure out how the information might be useful in the real world’ (behavioral). These items were summed into one overall SES score. Higher total scores indicated higher engagement. The scale uses a five-point Likert scale from 1 = “strongly disagree” to 5 = “strongly agree”, which results in a potential range of 32–160.

Depressive symptomatology over the past two weeks (as an indicator for mental health) was assessed via the Beck Depression Inventory–II (BDI-II) ( Beck et al., 1996 ). The scale assesses 21 depression-related symptoms (e.g., sleep problems, depressive mood, loss of interest) and a higher sum-score indicated higher levels of depression. Psychometric studies with high school students have shown adequate internal consistency (e.g., α = .92) and validity ( Osman et al., 2008 ).

A shortened version of the Short-Form Health Survey-20 ( Ware et al., 1992 ) was used to assess social and role functioning. Both subscales have shown sufficient validity ( McHorney et al., 1993 ) and role functioning sufficient reliability (α = .76; Carver et al., 1999 ). Social functioning was assessed with one item (“How much of the time, during the past month, has your health limited your social activities, like visiting with friends or close relatives?”; [1 = “Limited for more than 3 months”, 2 = “Limited for 3 months or less”, 3 = “Not limited at all”]) and role functioning with two items (“Does your health keep you from working at a job, doing work around the house, or going to school?”, “Have you been unable to do certain kinds or amounts of work, housework, or schoolwork because of your health?”; [1 = “All of the time“ to 5 = “None of the time”]).

Home environment factors related to the relationship between students and their parents/caregivers, as well as the parental relationship.

The Parental-Caregiver Warmth scale (which forms part of the Social and Health Assessment scale, Ruchkin et al., 2004 ) was used. It asks about the frequency of a participant experiencing that their parent/caregiver: “Is proud of me”, “Shows their love for me”, and “Makes me feel good when I am with them” (1 = “Never” to 4 = “Most of the time”). A higher sum-score indicated higher parental-caregiver warmth. This scale has shown sufficient internal consistency (α = 82; Barbot et al., 2012 ).

Two items were used to indicate currently perceived family support: “My family stands by me during difficult times” and “I feel safe when I am with my family” (1 = “Not at all” to 5 = “A lot”). Both were taken from the Child and Youth Resilience Measure ( Ungar & Liebenberg, 2011 ), an instrument that covers 28 different social-ecological resources which have been shown to be essential for child and youth resilience across countries. A higher sum-score indicated higher family support.

Additionally, participants were asked if they lived in a home with fights (verbal or physical) or severe relationship problems between parents/parent-figures/caregivers (yes/no). They were also asked if the most upsetting or frightening event they experienced in the past year happened at home, school, in the neighborhood, or somewhere else (they could choose only one option). One dummy coded variable was included into the model for participants who had experienced this event at home (“Adversity at home”). In relation to this question, they had to indicate if this event caused problems for them at home (“Limited functionality at home”) (1 = “Not at all” to 5 = “A lot”).

School context factors related to perceived teacher characteristics and the school environment.

An item assessed participants’ subjective perception of their teacher kindness (“My teachers treat me well (e.g., are friendly)”), and another assessed teacher competence (“My teachers teach well”). Both items were used in the Pathways to Resilience Youth Measure (PRYM; Resilience Research Centre, 2010 ) that was adapted for use with South African students during the Pathways study ( Van Rensburg et al., 2018 ). These items were rated on a three-point Likert scale (1 = “agree”, 2 = “unsure”, 3 = “disagree”). Higher scores indicate little teacher kindness and competence, respectively.

Furthermore, one item investigated if participants had experienced their most upsetting or frightening event during the last year at school (“Adversity at school”). In relation to this question, they had to indicate if this event caused problems for them at school (“Limited functionality at school”) (1 = “Not at all” to 5 = “A lot”).

Days since first school closure (DSFSC)

This was calculated as time (in days) from first school closure because of COVID-19 lockdown measures (March 18th, 2020) to the date when the survey was conducted in 2020 (see Figure 1 ).

Study timeline. Note . SC = school closure. Alert level in relation to COVID-19 regulations.

Participants

The 2018 sample consisted of N  = 340 high school students. The analyses reported in this article include high school students who participated in 2018 and 2020, were still school attending in 2020, and completed the school engagement scales (i.e., n  = 172; n  = 114 female students; average 2020 age: 18.13 years [ SD  = 1.73]; 81.40% Black, 15.10% White, 3.50% Other). One student did not fill out the school engagement scale in 2018 and was therefore excluded. The mean score for total school engagement was 120.88 (SD = 14.06) and 123.24 (SD = 13.36) in 2018 and 2020 respectively. The period from the start of the first school closures (18 March 2020) to date of participation ranged from 77 to 215 days (see Figure 1 ). Please see Table 1 for further sample characteristics.

In comparison to the 2020 sample, those who only participated in 2018 ( n  = 167, 49% drop-out) were majority female (59.9%). Their average age, 16.84 years (range 14–22 years), was significantly higher [ t  = 3.93, p  < .01]). Like the 2020 sample, most self-identified as Black (82%). Compared to the 2020 sample, those who dropped out did not show any significant differences regarding school engagement: total ( t  = −.15, p  > .05), affective ( t  = −.03, p  > .05), behavioral ( t  = −.77, p  > .05), and cognitive ( t  = −.53, p  > .05) school engagement. However, they did show a significant difference regarding the grade they were in in 2018 (typically, a higher grade [ r  = .23, p  < .01]).

A random forest approach was used to impute missing values using missForest (for details see Stekhoven & Bühlmann, 2012 ) via R 4.0.4 in Rstudio 1.4.1103 ( R Core Team, 2020 ). Overall, one person had one missing value in the BDI-II. Furthermore, the following assumptions of regression were tested ( Hayes, 2018 ): homoscedasticity and linearity via plotting the relationship between standardized residuals and standardized predicted values, normal distribution of the errors via the Shapiro-Wilk test, and independence of the residuals via the Durbin-Watson test.

The main model of interest was a moderated moderation model. A basic moderation analysis tests if the effect of a predictor on an outcome depends on the levels of a moderator, which is represented by a 2-way interaction between the predictor and moderator in the statistical model. A moderated moderation analysis tests if the influence of this first moderator itself depends on the levels of a second moderator, which is represented by a 3-way interaction. The respective effects of the predictor and moderators, as well as the 2-way interactions in the moderated moderation model must be interpreted as simple effects (and not main effects, for details see Hayes, 2018 ). The simple effect of a variable is its effect on the outcome when all other variables that are part of the interaction are zero. Hence, simple effects are only meaningful when the range of these variables includes zero.

According to Hayes (2018) , two models need to be estimated and formally tested to select the better fitting model to the data. First, a baseline model without any interaction term between the variables of interest (i.e., days since first school closure, school engagement in 2018, and the participants’ sex). The second model includes the interactions of interest (see Figure 2 ). In the case of this study, the moderated moderation model included three 2-way interactions between the variables of interest, as well as one 3-way interaction between all of them. All other variables that are presented in the Measures section were included as covariates. A simple effect in this moderated moderation model indicates, for example, the effect of sex on school engagement in 2020 when days since first school closure and school engagement in 2018 are zero. However, both variables, as well as sex, do not include zero and, therefore, their simple effects should not be interpreted ( Hayes, 2018 ).

Conceptual model.

The PROCESS 3.5 add-on ( Hayes, 2018 ) for IBM SPSS 26 ( IBM Corp, 2020 ) was used to estimate the moderated moderation model and to test if the 3-way interaction term provided a significant increase in explained variance compared to a model without the term (i.e., test of highest order unconditional interaction).

A Johnson-Neyman plot was used to identify regions of statistical significance in the case that the moderated moderation model fitted the data better than the baseline model and the 3-way interaction term was significant ( Hayes, 2018 ; Johnson & Fay, 1950 ). This procedure shows if the effect of the predictor on the outcome is significant only at specific values of the moderator by taking the whole range of the moderator into account. This procedure was done using interactions 1.1.3 ( Long, 2020 ).

The preliminary analysis showed that the moderated moderation model ( R ² = .43, AIC = 1332, BIC = 1402) had a better fit to the data than the baseline model ( R ² = .22, AIC = 1375, BIC = 1425). The formal test showed a significant increase in R ² (ΔR² = .21, F (6, 151) = 9.34, p  < .01).

The plotting of the relationship between the standardized residuals and standardized predicted values of the moderated moderation model was indicative of homoscedasticity and linearity (please see the Supplementary Material for the respective plot). Furthermore, a non-significant Shapiro-Wilk test indicated a normal distribution of the model's residuals ( S-W statistic = .99, p  > .05). A non-significant Durbin-Watson test indicated that the residuals were statistically independent ( D-W statistic = 1.78, p  > .05). Hence, all assumptions were met.

Moderated moderation model

The significant 3-way interaction ( β  = −5.09, p  < .05, see Table 2 ) shows that the moderating effect of school engagement in 2018 on the effect of days since first school closure at participation on school engagement in 2020 was different for female and male pupils. The test of highest order unconditional interaction showed that this 3-way interaction significantly explained variance in school engagement in 2020 ( F (1,151) = 4.08, p  < .05, ΔR² = .05). As Figure 3 shows, the moderating effect of school engagement 2018 was only found for female pupils.

Johnson-Neyman plots for girls (A) and boys (B). Note . SE 2018: school engagement in 2018, DSFSC: days since first school closure at participation, Effect of DSFSC on SE 2020: range of regression coefficients for the effect of DSFSC on school engagement in 2020. Dark grey areas indicate significant effects of DSFSC on SE 2020 in relation to the respective levels of SE 2018. The light grey area indicates non-significant effects of DSFSC on SE 2020 in relation to the respective levels of SE 2018.

Table 2.

Results for the moderated moderation model.

Note . R ² = .43. * indicate interaction terms. # simple effects. b : unstandardized effect, β : standardized effect, SE : standard error, CI: confidence interval, SE = school engagement, DSFSC: days since first school closure at participation.

Figure 3A shows the regions of significance for female students. A negative effect of days since first school closure on school engagement in 2020 was estimated for a score of school engagement in 2018 between 74–115. Furthermore, a region of significance for a positive effect of days since first school closure on school engagement 2020 was also estimated for girls with a school engagement 2018 score between 135–147.

Male pupils did not show any significant moderating effect of school engagement 2018. As can be seen in Figure 3B , no significant effect of days since first school closure on school engagement 2020 was found at any level of historic school engagement. Furthermore, two school-related covariates (i.e., teacher kindness and the most upsetting/frightening adversity experienced at school) showed significant effects on school engagement in 2020 (see Table 2 ).

The current study investigated the school engagement of 172 South African high school students, from an economically marginalized municipality, who experienced COVID-19-related school disruptions in the course of 2020. The study's interest was in factors that could have protected (i.e., moderated) continued school engagement regardless of how school closures might disrupt access to the resources that enable school engagement. School engagement is frequently associated with the resilience of youth from disadvantaged contexts in South Africa ( Van Breda & Theron, 2018 ). A better understanding of what might support continued school engagement, despite how repeated school closures are likely to disrupt the individual, home- and school-related resources that support school engagement (e.g., Clark et al., 2020 ; Coker et al., 2020 ; de Miranda et al., 2020 ; Spaull & van der Berg, 2020 ; Van Lancker & Parolin, 2020 ; World Bank, 2020 ), is crucial to sustaining/advancing youth resilience in the face of COVID-19-related challenges.

Prior studies of the relationship between historic and subsequent levels of school engagement (i.e., Li & Lerner, 2011 ; Quin et al., 2018 ) led us to expect that historic school engagement might have a significant effect on the negative impact of school disruption on present school engagement. However, this effect might not be the same for female and male students ( Wang & Eccles, 2012 ; Wang et al., 2011 ). Hence, it was the aim of this study to investigate if historic school engagement influences the expected negative effect of the duration of pandemic-related school closure on present school engagement, and if its influence is different for female and male students.

We anticipated that lower levels of historic school engagement would be a risk factor in that it enhances the negative effect of school disruption on present school engagement ( Li & Lerner, 2011 ; Quin et al., 2018 ), and that this interaction is stronger for female than male students ( Wang & Eccles, 2012 ; Wang et al., 2011 ). In line with our first hypothesis, the analysis showed that prior levels of school engagement (i.e., as measured in 2018) mattered for school engagement in 2020 and only for female students. The longer the duration of COVID-19-related disruptions to schooling, the lower the 2020 levels of school engagement for female students who reported lower school engagement in 2018. Time since first school closure showed no effect on 2020 school engagement for female students who were moderately school engaged in 2018. However, no significant moderating effect of historical school engagement was found for male students. For male students, the time since the first school closure on present school engagement in 2020 had no significant effect at low as well as moderate levels of historic school engagement in 2018. Hence, this model confirmed that historic levels of school engagement operate differently for female and male students.

Our second hypothesis expected that female and male students would show no significant differences in the effect of school disruption on present school engagement at higher levels of historic school engagement. When girls reported higher levels of 2018 school engagement, the time since the first school closure showed a significantly positive effect on 2020 school engagement. Hence, girls with higher levels of historic school engagement were able to increase their school engagement the longer the time since the first school disruption. For boys, however, no significant effect was found.

Overall, while the effect of the time since the first school closure on present school engagement in 2020 is significantly impacted by the level of historic school engagement in female students, no such effects exist for male students. Also, the identified neutral and positive effects are at odds with historic reports of girls’ school engagement suffering more than that of boys when schooling is disrupted (e.g., during the Ebola pandemic; World Bank, 2020 ), and with concerns about girls being especially vulnerable to COVID-19 lockdown risks (e.g., increased rates of teenage pregnancy; Molek & Bellizzi, 2022 ). The potentially protective effect of historic school engagement on girls’ school engagement during times of prolonged school closure is an important contribution to the school engagement literature.

Furthermore, two co-variates– both school-related – were significantly associated with school engagement in the context of COVID-19: teacher kindness and limited experience of adversity at school. This fits with the general school engagement literature that emphasizes the value of caring (i.e., kind) teachers and safe or affirming school environments to students’ school engagement ( Bang et al., 2020 ; Fredricks et al., 2004 ; Quin, 2017 ). The resilience literature that focuses on South African and other students who are vulnerable (e.g., challenged by socioeconomic risks or social status) reports these same resources ( Malindi & Machenjedze, 2012 ; Motti-Stefanidi & Masten, 2013 ; Van Breda & Theron, 2018 ), also during COVID-19 ( Luthar et al., 2020 ).

Implications for school psychologists

Because the entire sample was drawn from a resource-constrained municipality that faced similar stressors ( Ungar et al., 2021 ), it is difficult to theorize what might have contributed to the higher 2018 school engagement of some girls versus the lower school engagement of others. A follow-up study would be helpful to better understand what informed higher school engagement. Still, the important implication is that there is value in supporting students (particularly female ones) to be highly school engaged. While high levels of historic school engagement appear to strengthen school engagement in the context of disrupted schooling, even moderate levels of school engagement are likely to support girl students to remain school engaged when school closures/disruptions complicate their school journey. Although this finding might be too late for students impacted by COVID-19-related school closures, there is a high likelihood of future pandemics and other disasters (e.g., climate change related) and related school closures ( World Bank, 2020 ). In short, there is merit in actively supporting girl students to be highly school engaged with a view to their reaping protective benefits for future disruptions to their schooling. Essentially, this would mean ensuring their access to the individual, household, and school-related resources that matter for school engagement ( Fredricks et al., 2004 ; Quin, 2017 ; Quin et al., 2018 ; Sharkey et al., 2008 ). In this regard, school psychologists and other school-based practitioners are key advocates. As advocates, they will need to do more than support girl students to develop the necessary individual resources that matter for school engagement. Additionally, they will need to educate teachers and families that a ‘resource mix’ is pivotal to school engagement and heighten teachers’ and families’ appreciation for their personal potential to advance students’ engagement in schooling. For instance, teachers and families could benefit from knowing that time to be invested in their studies (i.e., fewer domestic chores/care duties), warm caregiving, and teacher kindness/competence can support girls to be school engaged.

Boys’ school engagement should not be neglected by school psychologists, even if the non-significant effects found for boys imply that their school engagement was apparently less vulnerable to the negative effects of schooling disruptions at low levels of past school engagement. In stressed communities, like the RYSE SA one, school engagement is key to advancing boys’ wellbeing and prospects ( Malindi & Machenjedze, 2012 ). Boys with historic levels of lower school engagement will require support to be school engaged; boys with historic levels of higher school engagement will require support to maintain/advance those levels in the face of school closure. Given that gendered socialization is probably implicated in girls being more school engaged ( Roorda et al., 2011 ), supporting boys’ school engagement encourages changes to how boys are traditionally socialized. School psychologists can play a key psychoeducational role in this.

 The finding that school-related factors – in particular, kind teachers and schools that protect students from adverse experiences at school – were salient to the school engagement of our sample of South African students during COVID-19, reinforces the importance of supporting teachers and schools to be resilience-enabling, also in times of national/global disaster ( Luthar et al., 2020 ). Knowing that many school staff have experienced significant professional stress during COVID-19 ( Kim & Asbury, 2020 ; Luthar et al., 2020 ; Spaull & van der Berg, 2020 ), underscores the need to enable/sustain the resilience of these adults ( Theron, 2021 ), especially as shocks and stressors are likely to continue even when COVID-19 abates ( World Bank, 2020 ). In the absence of teachers who are resilient enough to continue being supportive despite shocks and stressors, how much lower would students’ school engagement levels be? Likewise, what would the impact on school engagement be if school management staff are not resilient enough to facilitate a protective school environment in stressed times, particularly given the additional demands on school management in extraordinary circumstances like pandemics ( Viner et al., 2020 )? Essentially, championing the school engagement of students in COVID-19/extra-stressed times requires championing the resilience of their teachers and other school staff. School psychologists and other school-based practitioners have a special duty in this regard.

Limitations and future studies

It is possible that the school engagement levels of students who completed the RYSE survey when schools were open (i.e., parts of June/July; after schools reopened at the end of August), might have been confounded by the fact that they could attend school in-person. For instance, there are reports that the resumption of in-person schooling was embraced by students who were eager to return to school ( Gittings et al., 2021 ). Likewise, there were parents and teachers who were critical of schools reopening and whose concerns might have influenced students’ engagement ( Grootes, 2021 ).

Even though we anticipated differences between female and male students, the analyses found significant moderating effects of historic school engagement for girls only. Since this variable did not differentiate between sub-groups of boys, future research needs to identify variables that are specific to boy students to facilitate adequate prevention programs. In addition, we acknowledge that future studies should explore intersections between school engagement and gender diversity. To do so, survey items should include terminology that cisgender and LGBT+ students can identify with ( Pillay et al., 2022 ).

The attrition of 49% of the sample from 2018 to 2020 is not uncommon in longitudinal South African studies ( Cockcroft et al., 2019 ). Still, given the limited sample size, future research should investigate larger samples with an equal ratio of adolescent boys and girls. Also, it was impossible for the RYSE study to survey participants at an earlier time point (closer to the start of the school closure) due to COVID-19 regulations and related moratoriums on research with human participants. Hence, the survey assessments started about 2.5 months after the first school lockdown (18 March). It remains unclear, therefore, how the identified effects play out closer to the start of school closures. Future studies need to apply a design that makes it possible to administer surveys in resource-constrained communities in highly regulated pandemic circumstances. Additionally, future studies should make use of multi-item scales to more reliably investigate resources that were indicated by only one item in the RYSE survey (e.g., teacher competence/kindness, role functioning).

Finally, a significant auto-correlation of school engagement over time might be responsible for the identified effects. However, our study found contrasting effects between girl and boy students and identified a non-significant region in the model for the female sample, too. This shows that past school engagement should have an effect on future school engagement in the context of the studied risk that goes beyond mere auto-correlation by being a resilience-supporting resource.

It is probable that school closures will form part of societies’ response to future pandemics and other disasters ( World Bank, 2020 ). Accordingly, families and school communities need be ready to protect young people against the negative effects of school closure. The current study suggests that enabling young people's school engagement is an important first step to mitigating future effects of school closures, more particularly for girls.

Supplemental Material

Acknowledgements.

The RYSE study is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR; grant: IP2- 150708). CIHR is gratefully acknowledged but not held responsible for the results reported in this paper. J.H. position was funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (P400PS_194538).

Author biographies

Dr. Michael Ungar, PhD is a Family Therapist and Professor of Social Work at Dalhousie University (Halifax, Canada) where he holds the Canada Research Chair in Child, Family and Community Resilience. With over $12M in funded research, Dr. Ungar's clinical work and research spans more than a dozen low, middle, and high-income countries, with much of that work focused on the resilience of children, families, and adult populations experiencing mental health challenges, as well as stressed communities, especially those experiencing economic and social instability. Most recently, he acts as the Nominated Principal Investigator of the ground-breaking RYSE project (2018–2022).

Professor Linda Theron, D. Ed. is an HPCSA-registered Educational Psychologist. She is also a full professor in the Department of Educational Psychology, University of Pretoria, South Africa. Her clinical and research interest is in child and adolescent resilience, with a special interest in how situational and cultural context shapes the resilience of African young people. She is the Co-Principal Investigator of the RYSE project (2018–2022).

Dr. Jan Höltge, PhD is a postdoctoral research fellow in the Department of Psychology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, USA, and at the Resilience Research Centre, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada. His research interest are multisystemic resilience, collective resilience, multi-ethnical and Indigenous communities, and lifespan psychology.

Author's note: Jan Höltge is also affiliated at Department of Psychology, University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Honolulu, HI, USA.

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding: The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, (grant number IP2- 150708, P400PS_194538).

ORCID iD: Linda Theron https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3979-5782

Supplemental material: Supplemental material for this article is available online.

Contributor Information

Linda Theron, University of Pretoria, South Africa.

Michael Ungar, Resilience Research Centre, Dalhousie University, Canada.

Jan Höltge, Resilience Research Centre, Dalhousie University, Canada.

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NASP: The National Association of School Psychologists

Responding to COVID-19: Brief Action Steps for School Crisis Response Teams

In this section.

• Natural Disasters: Brief Facts and Tips
• Resources to Assist States/Territories Recovering from Natural Disasters
• Large-Scale Natural Disasters: Helping Children Cope
• Helping Children After a Wildfire: Tips for Caregivers and Teachers
• Relocating to a New School: Tips for Families
• Natural Disasters and Relocated Students With Special Needs

Schools should be prepared for local and community-wide infectious disease outbreaks. While it is difficult to predict when (or even if) COVID-19 will rise to the level of a pandemic, there are actions schools can take to be ready for such events. Schools need to work collaboratively with their local and state health departments, and be attentive to guidance offered by the CDC , to determine how to ensure safe learning environments. For detailed guidance on how to develop emergency operations plans capable of addressing pandemic illnesses refer to “Preparing for a Pandemic Illness: Guidelines for School Administrators and Crisis Teams.” This document provides suggestions for the immediate school response to the threat presented by COVID-19.

School Emergency Operations Plan

Ideally, schools have a well-developed emergency operations plan (EOP, also often referred to as crisis response plan ) to help them respond to multiple emergencies. In 2013 the U.S. Department of Education developed a guide to support schools in developing an EOP ( Guide for Developing High Quality School Emergency Operations Plans ). The EOP provides information that can support pandemic illness planning. Regardless of the status of your EOP, there are a number of specific actions that school crisis response teams can take right now in response to COVD-19. These include actions taken by what are often referred to as the Communication and Warning Annex; Public Health, Medical, and Mental Health Annex; Continuity of Operations (COOP) Annex; and Recovery Annex.

Communication and Warning Actions

The timely distribution of crisis facts is among the most important things a school can do when responding to a threatening situation. Thus, the following suggestions are offered:

• In consultation with school and community health officials, and consistent with guidance offered by the CDC , draft communication messages for school community members that provide updated information about COVID-19 and how to remain healthy. All of these communications should include current information about actions schools are taking to help ensure safety and provide guidance that empowers caregivers to help students cope with this health crisis.
• Schools should draft several communications and social media posts for (a) when the illness is confirmed in the community, (b) when a significant number of students are found ill, and (c) when schools need to close due to the illness.
• Identify multiple communication outlets (e.g., television, social media, email, letters home, voicemail) through which these messages might be shared.
• Share information for parents on how to talk to support their children regarding COVID-19 ( Talking to Children About COVID-19 (coronavirus): A Parent Resource from NASP and NASN)

Public Health Actions

Promote daily preventive actions for all staff, students, and families. For example, schools should encourage students to engage in health-promoting behaviors that prevent illnesses:

• Wash hands multiple times a day for at least 20 seconds.
• Don’t share food or drinks.
• Give elbow bumps instead of handshakes.
• Encourage students and school staff members to eat a balanced diet, get enough sleep, and exercise regularly to help them develop strong immune systems capable of fighting illness.

Public health actions also include activities that help reduce the spread of infectious diseases. For example:

• Know the symptoms of COVID-19 and ensure that information is made available to the school community in developmentally appropriate ways.
• Provide training about flu transmission and control measures. Train students to cover their mouths with a tissue when they sneeze or cough and throw out the tissue immediately, or to sneeze or cough into the bends of their elbows.
• Educate employees, visitors, and primary caregivers not to come to the school if they have flu symptoms. Reinforce for families to keep sick children home.
• Establish or reinforce procedures for how families let the school know if their child is sick. These procedures should include letting the school know why the student has been kept home so as to be able to track symptoms. If children are diagnosed with COVID-19, parents must let the school know so they can communicate with, and get guidance from, local health authorities.
• School health professionals might consider interviewing flu-like illness cases for pandemic risk factors and following CDC guidelines for health professionals regarding next steps.
• Begin to conduct active surveillance to identify influenza cases (e.g., review temperature logs; triage “sick” calls, hospitalizations, staff absences, unexplained deaths).

Also, attend to the school building itself. For example:

• Consider changing the air conditioning system filters; during the day, where possible, increase ventilation.
• Following each school day, the school should be thoroughly ventilated and cleaned. This can be done by opening all doors and windows or turning the air conditioning or heating systems up.
• Ensure that school administrators can control access to the buildings. Each school should have a plan to close certain entrances and exits, and to monitor others. To prepare for disease outbreaks, identify a main entrance and an indoor area where students and staff can be screened prior to moving to classrooms or other areas of the school.

Medical Actions

If they have not already done so, school health professionals should:

• Assess adequacy of infection-control supplies and review distribution plan.
• Identify areas within the school facility that can be used for isolation and quarantine.
• Develop plans for stockpiling and distributing infection-control supplies.
• Initiate screening for flu-like illnesses at the front desk and nurses’ offices.
• Isolate and send home staff or students with flu-like symptoms, utilizing supervised isolation areas in the school—access to this room should be strictly limited and monitored (i.e., parents picking up their ill children should be escorted to and from the isolation area), and a carefully monitored student checkout system should be activated.

Mental Health Actions

School personnel should provide caregivers with information regarding how to address the stress that might be generated by COVID-19. In addition to being told who to contact if they want help addressing their child’s anxiety about this virus, they should be advised that striving to find ways to make the danger associated with COVID-19 more predictable and controllable reduces how threatening their children will view the situation. Specifically, youth should be provided with developmentally appropriate information that (a) helps them to accurately gauge the threat presented by this disease and (b) reduces their risk of getting sick. In addition, giving students concrete things they can do to keep themselves and others healthy will reduce stress. And finally, highlight the actions that adults are taking to ensure student safety. See the companion document “ Preparing for Infectious Disease Epidemics: Brief Tips for School Mental Health Professionals .”

Continuity of Operations Actions

Administrators should begin to consider how they would maintain essential operations should COVID-19 affect their school. Previously issued guidance, provided by the U.S. Department of Education, titled Preparing for the Flu: Department of Education Recommendations to Ensure the Continuity of Learning for Schools (K–12) During Extended Student Absence or School Dismissal , will support such considerations. Among the issues this emergency operations plan (EOP) should address are the continuity of learning activities (e.g., how to continue learning activities if there are school closures or extended absences), order of succession and delegation of authority (e.g., who makes decisions should school administrators get sick), how to maintain essential school operations (e.g., what are the essential activities that must not be interrupted, such as payroll, and how will they be maintained during school closures), and guidelines for school staff members (e.g., who needs to continue working even during school closures).

Recovery Planning

Finally, begin to consider actions that would be taken should COVID-19 actually be present within a school. The companion document “ Preparing for a Pandemic Illness: Guidelines for School Administrators and Crisis Response Teams ” provides such guidance.

Additional Resources

• Preparing for a Pandemic Illness: Guidelines for School Administrators and Crisis Teams: https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources-and-podcasts/school-climate-safety-and-crisis/health-crises/preparing-for-a-pandemic-illness-guidelines-for-school-administrators-and-school-crisis-response-teams
• Preparing for Infectious Disease Epidemics: Brief Tips for School Mental Health Professionals: https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources-and-podcasts/school-climate-safety-and-crisis/health-crises/preparing-for-infectious-disease-epidemics-brief-tips-for-school-mental-health-professionals
• Talking to Children About COVID-19 (coronavirus): A Parent Resource: https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources-and-podcasts/school-climate-safety-and-crisis/health-crises/talking-to-children-about-covid-19-(coronavirus)-a-parent-resource

Interim Guidance for Administrators of U.S. Childcare Programs and K-12 Schools to Plan, Prepare, and Respond to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19):

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/specific-groups/guidance-for-schools.html

• Handwashing and Hand Sanitizer Use at Home, at Play, and Out and About: https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/pdf/hand-sanitizer-factsheet.pdf
• How to Disinfect Schools to Prevent the Spread of Flu: https://rems.ed.gov/Docs/How_to_ pdf

For more information related to schools and physical and mental health, visit www.nasponline.org and www.nasn.org

© 2020, National Association of School Psychologists, 4340 East West Highway, Suite 402, Bethesda, MD 20814, 301-657-0270, www.nasponline.org

Please cite this document as:

National Association of School Psychologists. (2020). Responding to COVID-19: Brief action steps for school crisis response teams [handout].

COVID-19: Brief Action Steps for School Crisis Response Teams