UPDATED August 17, 12 noon
I'm guessing that the media focus on learning loss is more about making sure schools are open so people can go to work and boost the economy rather than interest in the children ... no one talks about the learning loss of test prep - and the anxiety high stakes tests creates. Or the anxiety just getting ready for school and the often ordinariness of schools.
When I taught there was loads of "learning loss" when I tried to make school fun for them, especially for trips. My principal tried to limit our trips yet my kids had learning gain. The kids put up with me when I tried to teach the normal stuff. I tried to lighten the anxiety levels when I could but the tests were always looming. Boy, if I had to do it all over again today, I would totally focus on making school so much fun, they would have anxiety if they missed coming. But let's face it -- as kids get older, the social net of friends and so on becomes a serious operating issue ---- and one of my biggest failures I had as a teacher when I recognized that issue and tried to interfere in not a good way and made a few what I viewed as mean girls as enemies. I learned better ways for the future - find activities to incorporate kids on the outs.
For some students - maybe more than we know -- not being in school has actually been beneficial socially. This may be true especially for wealthier students who can more easily do the work at home with some support. But we hear from poorer students that being home avoided some of the more racist issues of school for some of them. Don't forget that school to prison pipeline.
Not a lot of media have reported on the tensions of school, especially with high stakes tests creating anxiety -- and no one talks about the learning loss of test prep.
And don't forget the anxiety. In my final years of teaching the admin expected us to create anxiety and fear of failure as "motivation" for test practice. Do you think kids at Eva's schools don't feel anxiety over batting their eyes? Listen to Leonie Haimson's WBAI show from this past Saturday on some insane rules in no excuses charters --- https://wbai.org/archive/program/episode/?id=24568
A Sunday Morning CBS report indicated what they termed "surprising" reports of less anxiety.
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/helping-students-cope-with-the-pressure-to-succeed/
