TITLE:
Whole-Child Development Losses and Racial Inequalities during the Pandemic: Fallouts of School Closure with Remote Learning and Unprotective Community
AUTHORS:
Jaekyung Lee, Young Sik Seo, Myles S. Faith
KEYWORDS:
Racial Equity, Whole-Child Education, School Accountability, Remote Learning, Protective Community
JOURNAL NAME:
Creative Education,
Vol.15 No.6,
June
24,
2024
ABSTRACT: Grounded in a strength-based whole-child development model, this study explores the racial disparities of students’ learning and well-being during the pandemic. Linking the U.S. national/state databases of education and health, it examines changes in whole-child outcomes and related factors—remote learning and protective community. It reveals race/ethnicity-stratified, cross-state variations of learning and well-being losses during school closure and accountability turnover. Overall, students in the states with longer school closure and remote learning suffered bigger losses, whereas students in the states with better school funding and protective community had smaller losses. While all racial minority groups experienced relatively more remote learning and unprotective community, their consequences diverged: achievement gaps, relative to Whites, widened for Blacks and Hispanics, whereas well-being gaps widened for Asians. Despite common vulnerability, racial minority groups showed different signs of strength and resilience. Policy and research implications are discussed towards holistic and equitable post-pandemic recovery among all races/ethnicities. A silver lining during the pandemic was breaking the silos across state government agencies (education, health/mental health, social work, etc.) for whole-child support services. Without cross-sector partnership and safety nets, school closure and accountability turnover would have serious negative impacts on equity, exacerbating pre-existing racial inequalities and achievement/well-being gaps.