The abrupt changes in people’s lives due to the pandemic created a number of different problems in various fields. The issue of academic success and mental health of students in modern society have become especially relevant because all adolescents were forced to learn remotely in 2020. However, before proceeding with the discussion, it would be important to differentiate the terms of well-being and mental health. According to Keyes (2002), even though these definitions are used interchangeably, well-being is subjective, while the psychological “health is an absence of dysfunctions” (p. 208). Therefore, mental health is only the indicator of well-being.
Coronavirus has drastically changed the educational system around the world. The authorities have implemented different measures, including increasing the number of online educational platforms and providing guidance to teachers (Schleicher, 2020). Researchers’ opinions differentiate on the matter of whether virtual classrooms are as effective as physical learning. For instance, Posso (2020) argues that they are no match to usual classes because it is likely to increase the number of drop-out students. As an example, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone in 2015 shut down all schools, and therefore many children were forced to abandon education because they were too poor to afford computers. In addition, many parents doubt the effectiveness of distance learning because it puts children under an enormous amount of stress due to the workload (Muir et al., 2020). Even though children spend a significant amount of time on homework, they receive little feedback from teachers, which makes them to question the value of their work. Nevertheless, many students have learned to cope with the increasing pressure, for instance, they try to get their parent involved in the process of learning (“Students’ positive outlook,” 2020). In conclusion, it would appear that these drastic changes have significantly influenced students’ mental health since it forced them to adapt and make coping mechanisms to avoid stress.
In addition, preventing academic delay and dropout also depends on students’ ability to handle emotional stress during their studies, after being exposed to a disaster context (Gibbs et al., 2013; Helen et al., 2020) However, the situation with Covid-19 is unique in this matter since in a rushed manner the educational process was forced to change into remote learning. Moreover, students were not allowed to go outside and spend time with their peers to socialize and relieve stress.
References
Muir, T., Murphy, C., Hicks, D., & Beasy, K. (2020). ‘The workload was intense’: What parents told us about remote learning. The Conversation. Web.
Posso, A. (2020). From WW2 to Ebola. The Conversation. Web.
Schleicher, A. The impact of COVID-19 on education: Insights from education at a glance 2020. OECD.
Keyes, C. L. (2002). The mental health continuum: From languishing to flourishing in life. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 43(2), 207–222.
Students’ positive outlook may be key to coping with pandemic. (2020). ACER Discover. Web.