Midterm

The pandemic has shed light on many issues in the US, one of them being the inequality in education. Many higher-income schools and students have the advantage and resources to continue their education during a global pandemic, allowing them to have more opportunities in the future. Lower-income schools are struggling to equate their students with what they will need during online schooling. They do not have the proper resources they need causing them to fall behind on their education even more. Lower-income students were already at a disadvantage, however, the pandemic has caused lower-income students to be more vulnerable.

One of the challenges that students face is having no access to a laptop or having a slow internet connection. The School District of Philadelphia, like many other school districts, has provided students with free Chromebooks. However, not all students were able to receive a Chromebook. Instead, the Philadelphia School District is providing those students with packets that students can pick up. The students who are not able to revive a laptop from the school district are forced to learn the materials in the packet themselves. A special needs teacher for fourth to fifth graders stated, “I have seen, for my class and on the school district website that some students have not gotten a Chromebook. Our school also drops off packers to the students with a no connect dropoff.” This has made it more challenging for her to teach and help her students if many of them do not have access to a laptop. Special needs students often are the ones who need the most help. Many of them are not receiving that help and are forced to learn for themselves. For many of the students who have received a Chromebook, or have already had access to a laptop or computer, have trouble with their internet connection. Most of the students have issues with their internet connection. The lack of internet connection and resources has affected their ability to learn. When asked what are some common issues that you or other students have during online classes, a student who is a junior in high school said, “So for some outside factors there are some internet issues. I know for me I get kicked out of my classes more often because it loses its connectivity.” While another high school student stated, “A lot of the time it mostly comes down to the connection issues. A lot of students are having a hard time getting into classes and some students have a hard time turning in certain assignments because they don’t know how to.” Low-income students can not afford fast internet. Sometimes they live in an overcrowded household where many people use the internet at once, causing it to slow down. This prevents students from being able to receive the proper education they need. Many of them were also not properly taught how to use their devices or know how to navigate their way online.

With schools being online, it can be confusing and tricky to navigate one’s way. Students and teachers do not know how to properly use technology. One student even stated, “Some of the teachers are also not used to teaching online. Some teachers aren’t very good with technology and it makes it harder for anyone.” Teachers have not had the proper training to help them learn how to use the technology that they are using to teach a class causing there to be confusion and delays when teaching a class. Another student has stated, “A lot of the teachers also don’t know how to use their microphones, more often than that you get issues where people mute themselves. And the teacher will go on and on and the online students will not hear them. Another issue that seems to persist is that teachers are not checking the chat.” Not only have teachers been struggling with technology but also students. The student then continues, “it can be pretty confusing for someone who doesn’t really understand computers, like me. I mean I know that I’m in high school and that we are supposed to be technologically advanced but I myself am not skilled with computers.” Students who have a hard time using their devices or navigating their way around can be behind on their schoolwork and have trouble learning new materials.

Now that students are learning at home, they have to rely on the help of their parents, older siblings, or guardians. However, there are many low-income students who lack the parental support they need. Students may not have anyone at home who is able to help them with their school work. Their parents may not have the proper education to help them with their school work or are too busy working multiple jobs and do not have enough time to help their children. Many students are first-generation or immigrated to the US and their parents may not be able to help them due to the language barriers. Other parents, unfortunately, do not support their children. I asked a k-5 special needs teacher what are some common issues she noticed that students have online, and she admitted that “It’s not as much parental support. And I don’t really know if it’s the nature of students I work with. Sometimes I feel like the parents don’t always expect that their students can perform academically. They might say ‘why do we have to give them so much if he is just gonna be playing around.’”

When I asked the four high school students if they have noticed any changes in their overall performance in their academics, all of them said yes. They have all noticed changes in a negative way. Some parents have also noticed a difference in their child’s overall performance. A parent of a second-grader said:

Yes. Well, I haven’t of course like all parents haven’t been in class with her to observe how she is in school. So this is my first time to observe her and how she is during class. She is much more different than what I thought. It seems like she doesn’t focus much. It seemed like in the past previous years I would hear she is doing great in school, she is on top of everything, she is nice. But when you’re actually at home and being with her at the same time, you didn’t see that. I’m not sure if that’s because she is in a different setting, she’s around people she’s comfortable with, and with a new teacher she has not met yet.

The two most common issues that teachers, students, and parents have noticed was a lack of motivation and distractions. One of the teachers stated, “Attention. Attention to the screen. Part of it is having the window to the students’ houses. Where they don’t have that support like we are asking them to just get the kids headphones and they don’t have headphones and it’s a very noisy household.” Paying attention to online school has been hard for many students. This has been a factor that caused their overall performance to decrease. Not only does it affect their performance, but it also affects their relationship with the teacher. The teacher continues at says:

“Fortunately for us, the majority of the class we had last year. The relationships we have built we refoster them. The relationships are the same in that sense. There are two students who are brand new to our school. It is interesting watching both of them. They both have several people in their household. One little boy is in a quiet area in general and we have been able to foster a relationship with him. The same thing you will do in a classroom getting to know their personality, we are able to do that with him. The other one whose household is quite distracting to him and us, it is harder to foster a relationship with him.”

Students who can foster a relationship with teachers do better academically and develop socially (American Psychological Association). Another teacher also stated, “Trying to stay focused. Them being on the computer for several hours, it’s not because they want to be but they are made to be.” Another student also shared how he has a hard time trying to stay focused and not get distracted. He stated:

Well, first off we’re at home so you can easily get distracted. For me, I’m sitting in my room where I have my tv and games that I can play. It obviously distracts me because I don’t want to focus online every day, it just doesn’t feel right. So I can say most kids feel the same if not worse about this.

School was a place where many students were able to have access to many resources. One of those resources was one on one tutoring. Some students relied on the extra help, one student even said, “My school has a room where you can go if you need help with school work and that was really helpful for me because I have anxiety, and I don’t like talking to my teachers. But now I can’t do that I can’t do that. I have to email them, which is understandable. But it does make things harder and it does make my grades go whoopty doo, you know?” Another resource was after school programs. Many after school-programs helped students with their homework or helped parents by taking care of their children while they were at work. After school programs are also a great way for students to socialize, offer a way for students to explore their potential, and allow for the student to have a youth development.

Not only has the pandemic affected their academics, but also their mental health. The students that I have interviewed stated that they feel a lack of motivation. One of the stated, “Some more internalized stuff is like there is no motivation to do any of the work, there is no motivation to get up in the morning. It’s just really hard to find that motivation to do things when it’s completely all online and not in person.” Being on the computer for hours, having no social interactions, and going through a pandemic can cause students to lose motivation in their school work. This will eventually cause a student’s overall performance to change and academic degrees. For many students, being away from their friends and other students has been challenging. The parent of a second-grader stated, “She does miss her friends, she does say she can’t wait to see them again, she can’t wait to go back to school and hang out with them again. She has said things are different since the coronavirus came to be… she noticed when she goes out to play in the playground that kids are distant and aren’t friendly like they usually were before the pandemic.”

The pandemic has caused many students, especially low-income students, to fall behind on their school work. Many of them lack the resources to help get them through this school year. They are being forced to learn on their own without any help. They also do not have the proper materials they need to succeed during online classes. This will only create a larger disparity between low income and high-income students.

Citation:

American Psychological Association, American Psychological Association, www.apa.org/education/k12/relationships.