Esther Yu, Samantha Burns, Calpanaa Jegatheeswaran, Michal Perlman
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic led to unprecedented disruptions to children’s education across the globe, including abrupt transitions from in-person learning to learning from home. The current study investigates patterns of change in the educational challenges that 453 children and 454 parents experienced at home during the early (2020–2021) and later stages (2021–2022) of the pandemic. The study took place in Toronto, Canada and our sample was diverse and reflected a low-income status. Thematic analyses revealed variation in the educational challenges experienced by children and parents in early and later COVID-19 pandemic. Latent class analyses identified two subgroups of children (79% Consistently Struggling, 21% with Delayed Challenges) and two subgroups of parents (81% Consistently Struggling, 19% with Delayed Challenges) based on their educational challenges across stages of the pandemic. Families with relatively higher socio-economic status (SES) in our sample showed higher levels of mental health symptoms and consistently struggled throughout the pandemic, while families with lower SES initially showed less mental health symptoms but experienced delayed increases in challenges as the pandemic progressed. These subgroups of change in educational challenges across stages of the pandemic were also significantly associated with parental mental health (i.e., depression, anxiety, and stress) and child temperament (anger and fear). These findings highlight the need to investigate the longitudinal impacts of COVID-19 on the wellbeing of young children and their families, and offers valuable knowledge for future preparedness in the face of any global crises. Recommendations for future research and intervention are discussed.
期刊介绍:
Early Childhood Education Journal is a professional publication of original peer-reviewed articles that reflect exemplary practices in the field of contemporary early childhood education. Articles cover the social, physical, emotional, and intellectual development of children age birth through 8, analyzing issues, trends, and practices from an educational perspective. The journal publishes feature-length articles that skillfully blend 1) theory, research, and practice, 2) descriptions of outstanding early childhood programs worldwide, and 3) quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods research. Early Childhood Education Journal is of interest not only to classroom teachers, child care providers, college and university faculty, and administrators, but also to other professionals in psychology, health care, family relations, and social services dedicated to the care of young children.
Areas of Emphasis:
International studies;
Educational programs in diverse settings;
Early learning across multiple domains;
Projects demonstrating inter-professional collaboration;
Qualitative and quantitative research and case studies;
Best practices in early childhood teacher education;
Theory, research, and practice relating to professional development;
Family, school, and community relationships;
Investigations related to curriculum and instruction;
Articles that link theory and best practices;
Reviews of research with well-articulated connections to the field