Within a few hours, Covid stopped the world—students expected to return in a few weeks, only to remain at home, causing families and educators to rethink a new school normal. We were interested in the arc of what has happened, pre-pandemic to present time, particularly in comparison with distinct locations. We interviewed principals, counselors, curriculum specialists & teachers, across four schools, three in the US and one in Ireland, to assess whether responses to the pandemic varied according to economic status, ethnicity, or location.

All schools reacted similarly to the stoppage, describing it as catastrophic and nightmarish; once they realized the indeterminate nature of the virus, educators became concerned with logistical issues as they rushed to provide technology access and training to staff, students, and families. Students were not the only ones affected: teachers were expected to change teaching styles and methods multiple times in shortened timeframes. Educators noted similar challenges as students returned to classrooms: they were less able to interact, demonstrated limited tolerance for others’ opinions, and lacked attentional focus and persistence.

Following lockdown, educators’ and families’ reactions varied based on perspectives regarding interventions. United States educators negotiated the immediate need to employ test focused strategies against a desire to address students’ social and emotional development. This perspective of ‘we want it all, right now’ was most obvious in the wealthiest school, where parents contributed funds to hire tutors. Other families at this school requested special education placements to obtain one-to-one support. In the most affluent school, greater expectations existed for parents to assist in students’ academic recovery and social and emotional development. This was a two-edged sword, however, as families placed higher expectations on the school to respond quickly to perceived needs.

Such actions were less obvious in lower performing schools where parents were more accepting of teachers’ efforts to address achievement losses. In the lowest performing school, district mandated the first forty minutes of the day to include phonics instruction across grade levels for the lowest performing students. Despite recognition of the challenges, no US school had concrete plans to address students’ social and emotional development. In several cases, disruptive interactions caused teachers to increase their emphasis on isolated skills worksheets, further limiting opportunities for students to improve various social abilities.

In contrast, Irish government officials provided instructional plans whereby students would interact and share opinions with classmates. Moreover, the participating school had one teacher, whose sole responsibilities focused on the emotional well-being of some twenty-five students, designated as school refusers. Differences between US and Irish priorities reflect the accountability priorities of the two countries.

Covid response differences and educators’ attempts to address them raise the question of whether students’ social and emotional development can be addressed prior to or in conjunction with academic achievement. If schools cannot address achievement loss, with or without family support, we fear Covid’s main consequence might be a ‘lost generation’ of students.

Keywords: Pandemic, schools, intervention, recovery.