Social Policy Report - Volume 34 - Number 3 - COVID-19 and Resilience in Schools

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Sarah

Mixed-methods evidence examines risk and resilience among more than 14,000 students across 49 U.S. schools during the first three months of COVID-19. Depression and anxiety related to clinically significant symptoms were generally lower during 2020 distance learning than 2019 benchmarks, with noted exceptions. Parent support emerged as the strongest protective factor for depression and also the largest predictor for anxiety, alongside school adults’ heard concerns, students’ future worries, and grade concerns. Findings recommend upstream institutional mental health support for caregivers and adult staff.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages65

Reading Time2 h 44 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Key findings on depression and anxiety

Protective and risk factors

Policy implications and practice recommendations

Conclusion and institutional support

| | | Volume 34, Number 3 | 2021
Social Policy Report | | --- | --- | --- | COVID-19 and Resilience in Schools: Implications for Practice and Policy Suniya S. Luthar, Authentic Connections, AC Groups, Columbia University's Teachers College-Emerita Lisa S. Pao, Authentic Connections Nina L. Kumar, Authentic Connections ABSTRACT This is a mixed-methods study of risk and resilience in a sample of over 14,000 students from 49 schools, assessed during the ﬁrst 3 months of COVID-19 in the United States. Over a third of students were of color and almost a third received ﬁ nancial aid. Participation rates were typically 90–99% . Overall, rates of clinically signiﬁcant depression and anxiety were lower during distance learning in 2020 as compared to parallel rates documented during 2019, with a few exceptions. Hispanic students did not show reductions in depression rates, nor did gender non-binary youth. Analyses of multiple risk and protective factors showed that in relation to depression, the most potent predictor was parent support, with effect sizes at least twice as high as those for any other predictor. Other robust predictors of depression included efﬁcacy of learning online and concerns heard by school adults. In predicting to anxiety, parent support again had the largest effect sizes, followed by concerns heard at school, students’ worries about their futures, and worries about grades. In general, the absence of protective factors was more likely to be linked with high distress among youth of color than White students, and among girls and gender non-binary students as compared to boys. At a policy level, the ﬁ ndings call for concerted attention to the well-being of adults charged with caring for youth. Parents’ mental health has been increasingly threatened with the protracted stress linked with the pandemic. Thus, all avenues must be considered toward providing them with support—using feasible, community-based interventions—as this is always the most important step in fostering children's resilience through adversity. Additionally, schools ’ expectations about learning will have to be adjusted. As educators try to makeup for academic losses during the pandemic, they must avoid high workloads detrimental for students’mental health (and thus ability to learn) . Finally, there must be ongoing Social Policy Report | 1 institutional mental health support for teachers, counselors, administrators, and staff. There must be ongoing institutional mental health support for teachers, counselors, administrators, and staff. Many of these adults have provided critical safety nets for youth since the start of the pandemic and are themselves at high risk for burnout. Many of these adults have provided critical safety nets for youth since the start of the pandemic and are themselves at high risk for burnout. In conclusion, ﬁ ndings clearly show that if a central societal goal is to maximize resilience among youth through the continuing pandemicrelated challenges, we will have to deliberately prioritize an “upstream” approach, ensuring ongoing support for the adults who take care of them in their everyday lives. Correspondence Suniya S. Luthar ([SLuthar@AuthConn.com](SLuthar@AuthConn.com) ) Social Policy Report | 2 Social Policy Report Volume 34, Number 3 | 2021 ISSN 1075-7031 Social Policy Report is published three times a year by the Society for Research in Child Development. EDITORIAL TEAM Lead Editor Ellen Wartella, PhD [ellen-wartella@northwestern.edu](ellen-wartella@northwestern.edu) Associate Editor Fashina Aladé, PhD [alade@u.northwestern.edu](alade@u.northwestern.edu) Editorial Board P. Lindsay Chase-Lansdale, PhD Sandra Waxman, PhD David Figlio, PhD Craig Garﬁeld, MD Neil Jordan, PhD Terri Sabol, PhD David Uttal, PhD Diane Schanzenbach, PhD Dedre Gentner, PhD Matthew M. Davis, MD Amelie Petitclerc, PhD Rachel Flynn, PhDOnnie Rogers, PhD SRCD Policy Staff Kelly R. Fisher, PhD Nig

FAQs

How was student mental health assessed during COVID-19?

The study used a mixed-methods approach to assess risk and resilience in a sample of over 14,000 students across 49 schools during the first three months of COVID-19 in the U.S.

What factors most strongly predicted depression and anxiety?

For depression, the most potent predictor was parent support, with effects at least twice as large as other predictors. For anxiety, parent support again had the largest effect size, followed by concerns heard at school and students’ worries about their futures and grades.

What do the findings recommend for practice and policy?

Recommendations emphasize an upstream approach that prioritizes ongoing support for the adults who care for youth, including institutional mental health support for teachers, counselors, administrators, and staff, and adjustments to learning expectations and workloads during the pandemic.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Sarah