Sophia Stafford
// Why keeping schools open is the best option //
At the beginning of the 2020 academic year, Ruby Rodriguez began her freshman year at St. Anthony High School, in Milwaukee. Starting the school year online was devastating for Ruby. Her grades dropped from A’s and B’s to D’s and F’s, she failed to make new friends, and she suffered from extreme burnout. Unfortunately, Ruby shared the experience of millions of students. Attending classes remotely made it much harder for students to focus and learn material, leaving students months behind in their classes. The lack of social interaction at school and extracurricular activities left children across the country feeling isolated and unhappy. In addition, the lack of affordable childcare made it impossible for parents across the country to balance work with watching their kids. The United States has not bounced back from the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. During Omicron and future surges, schools must remain open to set students up for success.
Research suggests that children do not learn as well while attending school online. The combination of increased distractions and a lack of attention from teachers have pushed children, specifically minorities, back several months. A report conducted by McKinsey & Company showed that schools with a majority of Black or Hispanic students ended 2021 six months behind in math and five to six months behind in reading. In comparison, schools with a majority of White students were four months behind in math and three months behind in reading. This has further widened the achievement gap between white students and students of color.
Online schooling can also drastically impact a student’s mental state. Many organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, have declared a national state of emergency in adolescents’ mental health. With the absence of extracurriculars and social interactions, online school left many students feeling isolated. According to the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health, 46% of parents say that their child developed or worsened symptoms of depression or anxiety during the pandemic. In the past two years, suicide rates have increased enormously, especially among teenage girls. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of weekly visits by the emergency department for suspected suicide attempts increased 50.6% from 2019 to 2021. If schools transition online, the problems caused by isolation will only worsen.
Transitioning online will also disproportionately affect low-income families. Low income students will fall further behind in their learning compared to higher income students if schools return online. A return to online school will also impact the families of these students. If families cannot find or afford a childcare provider, many parents will need to stay at home to watch their children and help them readjust to online school. This will force them to leave their jobs, which will have significant effects on the family’s finances. Consequently, the move would further widen the gap between low-income and high-income families.
Those in favor of school closures might argue that students’ physical health will become compromised if schools remain open. While the Omicron variant is highly contagious, it is nowhere near as dangerous as previous versions. People across all age groups are less likely to need hospitalization and have reported milder symptoms when infected with Omicron compared to the Beta or Delta variants. The mortality rate of Omicron is also lower than previous variants. This is especially true in children. When children contract the virus, their symptoms are milder and are less likely to require hospitalization than adults. Even children under five, who cannot yet receive the vaccine are not likely to need hospitalization. According to the Washington Department of Health, only 1.4 out of ten million children under five required hospitalization. That data suggests that children are at more risk of dying in car crashes than from Omicron. The likelihood of long COVID is also low in children. According to a study done by University College London, between two and 14 percent of children 11 to 17 had cases of long COVID. In addition, the CDC has reported that transmission from student to student is very rare, especially if appropriate safety measures are put in place.
Proponents of school closures also assert that online school will only last for a few weeks, limiting the negative consequences. However, this assertion is completely false. Every time schools switch online, there are costs, regardless of the duration. Parents will need to quit their jobs and teachers will need to readjust to online school. Not to mention, students’ lives will be completely upended. Worse, if schools close every time the number of COVID-19 cases becomes too high, the cost of switching will increase. The economy will become even more unstable, teachers will quit because of constant schedule changes, and students will miss out on essential time in the classroom. Schools must remain open to support the United States’ students, teachers, and parents.
