The past year has thrown many unexpected challenges at us all. From being made redundant to losing loved ones, people have suffered. It’s been overwhelming , disappointing, and frightening. Covid-19 and its implications have affected everybody. However, it can be easy to say that school-aged children haven’t had it so bad. They’re not at a high risk of Covid-19 and a year without going to school would have been to most a dream; until it became a reality. There will be a long-term impact which will affect children in reception to students in upper sixth.
What are the effects on children?
In November 2020, Ofsted released a report titled ‘Children hardest hit by COVID-19 pandemic are regressing in basic skills and learning’. This report discusses how Covid-19 has impacted school aged children and how it may affect them in the long run. For example, “some young children, who were previously potty trained, have lapsed back into nappies, particularly those whose parents were unable to work flexibly”. This demonstrates the effect of the pandemic on young children. However, this is not necessarily a long term impact. It also opens up the argument to the role of parents in homeschooling but also how difficult it has been if you’re working from home.
Will older children suffer more in the long run than their younger counterparts? Unfortunately, Ofsted’s report hints at this possibility. It discusses how “older children have lost stamina in their reading and writing, some have lost physical fitness, [and] others show signs of mental distress, including an increase in eating disorders and self-harm”. This is worrying because these effects will affect people for a long time.
The cancellation of exams
GCSE and A-Level students are in a very difficult and frustrating situation. Cancelled exams has made everything seem a bit pointless. One day there was revision to do and the next there was nothing: there was no longer a goal insight which made it incredibly difficult to remain motivated.
Although ‘traditional’ exams were cancelled , BTEC assessments were not. This has provoked a strong response from students and teachers alike. As the UK locked down, more than 100,000 exams were planned to go ahead. According to the BBC, “The Association of Colleges has complained to the government that it’s ‘unfair’ that students on vocational courses will have the stress of preparing for exams during the pandemic, while those taking GCSEs and A-levels will have other ways of deciding grades.”
How fragmented is the British education system?
The differing approach to BTEC assessments and traditional exams arguably demonstrates how fragmented the education system is. The British education system, however, has been problematic for some time. Covid-19 has simply highlighted the cracks which poses the question as to what extent inequalities will deepen as a result.
Inequality in education
‘The Covid-19 crisis and educational inequality’ report by Professor Anna Vignoles from the University of Cambridge and Professor Simon Burgess from the University of Bristol provides an insight into the way in which Covid-19 will exacerbate educational inequalities.
Firstly, “the amount of time children are spending on school-work varies enormously both by school and by parents’ ability to support remote schooling“. Unfortunately, this will create an imbalance of knowledge: whilst some children will have excelled with their reading and writing as a result of their parents’ support, other children will suffer.
Furthermore, children from socio-economically disadvantaged families are likely to suffer significantly because “household income and family environment are major determinants of children’s academic achievement in normal circumstances“. These consequences catalyse each other and create a somewhat snowball effect as they build up over time. Covid-19 will have a detrimental long term effect on students from working class backgrounds.
I hope it will be for the better in the end; that it will show that change needs to happen. Your financial situation should not determine your chance to succeed academically. Covid-19 has emphasised this and the Government need to step up and act now before it is too late. Your opportunities to education should not be at risk because of your economic background. The Government must work with schools to prevent this from happening.
Maggie John
Feature image courtesy of Element5 Digital on Unsplash. This Image has in no way been altered. Image license is available here.
maggiejohn
I'm nineteen years old and I study French and Spanish at the University of Exeter. I also write for my university newspaper Exeposé and lifestyle magazine Razz. I have also written for The Meridian.