Page 18 - Evan Luby

17 EARLY LEARNERS INTROIDUCTION

EARLY COVID 19 has had a mssive effect on early learners, with the lack of school time

LEARNERS the early learners are feeling quite lonely and bored. To measure the effect this

year has had on children, NBC News gathered data on a range of child welfare
metrics, looking at what’s changed since March when the virus closed nearly

every school in the country. The numbers aren’t all bad news — drug and alcohol

use among youth, for example, appears to be down, as are juvenile arrest and
incarceration rates. But, in other areas, preliminary data points to alarming signs

that kids are in trouble. Food banks have been slammed with hungry families as

an estimated 17 million children — many largely cut off from free school lunches
— are now in danger of not having enough to eat. That’s an increase of more than

6 million hungry children compared to before the pandemic.

Schools are struggling to teach students remotely or in classrooms in which

children wear masks and sit behind plastic shields. Its clear that its a difficult
time for the kids. I surveyed my 7 and 10 year old brother and sister about their

experience to gather some research which you can see on the next page.