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Chapter 31 - Social and Educational Impacts of Epidemics and Pandemics

from Section 4 - Responses to Meet the Mental Health Needs of People Affected by Emergencies, Major Incidents, and Pandemics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 January 2024

By
Matthew J Easterbrook ,
Kathryn J Lester ,
Alison Lacey ,
Lewis Doyle  and
Vladislav H Grozev
Edited by
Richard Williams ,
Verity Kemp ,
Keith Porter ,
Tim Healing  and
John Drury
Richard Williams
Affiliation:
University of South Wales
Verity Kemp
Affiliation:
Independent Health Emergency Planning Consultant
Keith Porter
Affiliation:
University of Birmingham
Tim Healing
Affiliation:
Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London
John Drury
Affiliation:
University of Sussex
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Summary

The COVID-19 pandemic severely disrupted the educational and social lives of millions of children across the globe. Many governments attempted to curb the spread of the virus by closing schools or allowing them to remain open only for certain students, necessitating a rapid adjustment to remote home learning for schools and families. In the UK, this led to huge variability in the provision of educational materials, in children’s engagement, and in parents’ capacity to support home learning. This chapter describes the impacts of the school closures on families’ and students’ educational and socioemotional development.

Keywords

childrenCOVID-19digital divideeducationinequalitiespandemicsocial isolationsocioeconomic status (SES)
Type
Chapter
Information
Major Incidents, Pandemics and Mental Health
The Psychosocial Aspects of Health Emergencies, Incidents, Disasters and Disease Outbreaks
 , pp. 231 - 240
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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