Login
Pandemic Recovery in Schools Will Be a ‘Long Slog,’ Says Sobering National Report
Nearly five years after COVID-19 began, a national report released Tuesday shows that recovery from the pandemic for students will be a “long slog.”
“The State of the American Student,” a report by the Center for Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) states that the findings are “sobering, daunting, and discouraging,” and that the slow pace of recovery from the pandemic has left an indelible mark on education, with long-term implications for students’ income, racial inequity and social mobility in the U.S.
“If policymakers and educators do not get serious about ensuring these students have access to proven interventions, then we will continue to see the educational impact of the pandemic reverberate for many years, both in our schools and in our economy,” the report stated.
For the last three years, CRPE — a research organization out of the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College at Arizona State University — has released annual reports examining the academic, social, emotional and mental health effects of the pandemic on students.
CRPE Executive Director Robin Lake said the reports were an attempt to ensure that schools wouldn’t go back to business as usual before students were “made whole.”
Study Finds Nonfatal Opioid Overdoses in Youth Spiked During Pandemic: Majority Occurred at Home
Drug overdose mortality has risen faster among adolescents than the general population in recent years, largely due to fentanyl, a potent opioid pain medication.
A study published in JAMA sheds light on trends in nonfatal opioid overdoses in youth — an area that was not as well characterized, but key to formulating prevention strategies to save lives.
Drug overdose mortality has risen faster among adolescents than the general population in recent years, largely due to fentanyl, a potent opioid pain medication.
A study published in JAMA sheds light on trends in nonfatal opioid overdoses in youth — an area that was not as well characterized, but key to formulating prevention strategies to save lives.
‘Alarming Rise’ in Suicidality Among Black Youth in Chicago’s South Side
Traditionally, Black Americans have faced a significantly lower risk of suicide compared to their white counterparts.
But increasing factors like bullying, community violence, and “neglectful” parenting are contributing to a broader trend of mental health crises among youth in disadvantaged communities, according to a new study led by Case Western Reserve University.
The key finding: an “alarming” increase in suicidality among Black youth in American cities.
“Our findings highlight the urgent need for targeted interventions that address the multiple, intersecting factors contributing to this crisis,” said the study’s primary researcher Dexter Voisin, dean of the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences at Case Western Reserve.
New Study Links Neighborhood Food Access to Child Obesity Risk
Limited access to healthy foods, resulting from residence in under-resourced neighborhoods, is a critical public health concern.
A new study suggests that residing in these areas during pregnancy or early childhood significantly raises the risk of obesity and severe obesity from childhood to adolescence.
The findings are published Sept. 16 in JAMA Pediatrics.
While previous research has established a connection between food insecurity and obesity in adults, critical early life stages, such as pregnancy and early childhood are often overlooked, despite offering greater potential for intervention and influence on long-term health outcomes.
Common Virus That Can Leave Kids Paralyzed Is Spiking in U.S. Which States Is It Spreading?
Rates of enterovirus D68, a respiratory virus that can sometimes lead to a polio-like illness and paralysis in children, have risen significantly across the U.S. over the past month, new data show.
Nationally, the virus is now being detected at medium levels after having stayed at low levels from Sept. 2023 to Aug. 2024, based on wastewater data from the nonprofit WastewaterSCAN. (Humans infected with viruses may excrete them in waste, so wastewater can detect viral activity in communities.)
Enterovirus D68 activity started rising this past spring in the South, a WastewaterSCAN spokesperson tells TODAY.com.
Since then, rates have started rising in all four regions the group tracks (the West, South, Midwest and Northeast) but are still highest in the South.
While the virus usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms and most people have encountered it at some point, the rising rates are concerning because enterovirus D68 can cause a rare but serious complication in kids known as acute flaccid myelitis, a neurologic condition that comes on suddenly and can cause loss of muscle and reflexes.
‘Educational’ Screens in Classrooms Do More Harm Than Good | Opinion
There has been a lot of recent attention on attempts to get phones out of schools.
The data make clear that phones inhibit students’ learning, cause and exacerbate discipline issues, and harm students’ mental health.
Evidence is also clear that phone bans work.
Bans improve academic outcomes, especially for the lowest-performing students, and improve the social environment for students.
For all these reasons, schools, school districts, and even entire states are getting rid of phones in the classroom. But what about the other “educational” screens sitting on students’ desks all day?
While phones may be the worst culprits for distraction from learning during the school day, the “educational” screens many children are using in their classrooms, like Chromebooks, tablets, or laptops, are also hurting academic outcomes.
Senators, Parents Ramp up Pressure on House to Pass Kids Online Safety Act
Senators and parents are ratcheting up pressure on House lawmakers this week to push forward with legislation aimed at increasing children’s digital safety and privacy as a House committee prepares to mark up the bill Wednesday.
Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), the co-author of the Kids Safety Online Act (KOSA), kicked off these efforts Monday morning amid the roadblocks and GOP pushback the bill faces in the House.
The push from Blackburn and other senators is coupled with pressure from parents, some of whose children have died or been seriously harmed because of social media.
Many are coming to Capitol Hill this week to meet with lawmakers.
While the House Energy and Commerce Committee announced late Monday it will mark up KOSA on Wednesday, getting the bill passed in its current form is likely to face challenges.
