Current Context

Understanding the Impact of COVID-19

COLLECTIVE TRAUMA

Now more than ever, resources and evidenced-based practices are needed to support an excellent and equitable education for young students in Texas. As schools return to in-person learning and recover from the challenges of the past year, District leaders must navigate the collective trauma of a persistent public health emergency and climate of racial unrest experienced by students, families, teachers, and administrators. Leaders must also respond with urgency to widening racial and economic disparities given the disproportionate effect of the pandemic on students of color and those already experiencing economic disadvantage.

Many researchers now consider the pandemic to be classified as an Adverse Childhood Event (ACE). Other scholars posit that the pandemic has amplified and intensified pre-existing ACEs. Not only were children’s routines and relationships disrupted, but children also experienced both directly and indirectly the pandemic-related stressors faced by their parents and families: unemployment, limited access to health care, food and housing insecurity, and social isolation. We are learning and seeing in real-time how these environmental factors can have short- and long-term implications for young children’s social and emotional health. Districts across the state are already witnessing behavioral shifts in children. Without proper support, the consequences of the past year may have detrimental impacts on children’s academic growth and later success.

To learn more see the following:

Explore related recommendations here.

“tens of thousands of children will have lost parents or grandparents at an age when they cannot appreciate (or later recall) the loss, but those loved ones’ absences will influence their lives in innumerable and immeasurable ways”

Christakis (2020)

ENROLLMENT DECLINE & LEARNING RECOVERY

During SY2021, Prekindergarten enrollment declined 21% and Kindergarten enrollment declined 6% across the state (compared to an average of 1% across grades 1-12). Because 90% of brain development occurs before the age of 5, these enrollment declines represent decreased learning opportunities for our youngest learners.

For some information on the importance of addressing enrollment decline and learning recovery this year as well as the complexities of COVID-19’s impact on learning for young students see:

Explore related recommendations here.