Inequalities in the Challenges Affecting Children and their Families during COVID-19 with School Closures and Reopenings: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

School closure is one of the most debated measures undertaken to contain the spread of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. The pandemic has devastating health and socio-economic effects and must be contained, but schools play a vital role in present and future well-being, capabilities and health of children. We examine the detrimental consequences of both the closure and reopening of schools, by focusing on inequalities in the challenges affecting children and their families. This paper is grounded on Irish and Italian data from a multi-national longitudinal qualitative interview study. Research participants articulated a variety of issues and challenges that highlight inequalities in access to education during school closures, in the supportiveness of home setting, and in school preparedness to reopen, often mirroring or exacerbating pre-existing inequalities. The reported unequal lived experiences indicate that some harms are actionable, and already suggest some potential harm mitigation strategies. We conclude by advocating for enhanced public consultation to help mitigate the consequences of public dilemmas in general, and to help detect and tackle inadequacies and inequalities for school children through and beyond the pandemic, by learning from the experience of the concerned actors.

Vulnerability and Response-Ability in the Pandemic Marketplace: Developing an Ethic of Care for Provisioning in Crisis

“…Participants commented that women's caring responsibilities were often particularly multifaceted, owing to sudden changes in daily routines through school and business closures (see also Clark et al, 2021). This meant that people who had no choice but to take responsibility for all these multiple caring loads might have had to neglect their self-care needs or become uncaring toward their wider social circle (Galasso & Watts, 2022). In addition, many countries had a oneperson-only rule for shopping, which meant that shopping was now forcibly a solo expedition: "it used to be a kind of a family thing all of us go together, now it's usually just me who goes on my own to do it" (IET1).…”

“…An awareness of one's own and others' vulnerabilities often motivated new relational ties: "So in some ways you've sort of forged new relationships with neighbors and shop owners" (UKT2). Participants reflected on government's responsibility to address the needs of everyone in society and called for equity when they perceived that 'caring' policies such as school closures exacerbated inequalities (see also Galasso & Watts, 2022). As a physical space of interaction, the marketplace offered a way of 'placing' these reflections within individuals' experiences and agentic scope.…”