Supporting the Educational and Mental Well-Being of Black Families During and Post-COVID-19

• In Event: The Inequitable Impact of COVID-19 on Education: A Crisis or an Opportunity?

Abstract

Purpose:
The objectives of this study are: 1) to discover the experiences regarding educational and mental health of Black families during this pandemic; and 2) to develop culturally appropriate interventions school stakeholders can use to support Black students upon their return to schools.

Perspective:
While COVID-19 projections of risk about "learning loss" and psychological distress in children and youth have been conducted (Agostnelli et al., 2020), limited research has addressed the social and academic outcomes of these approaches to learning. A recent study exploring the mental health of parents of children suggested high rates of emotional distress, including stress and anxiety (van Tilburg et al., 2020). As non-Latinx White parents and public policy officials
advocate for school-reopening, citing equity as a driving reason (e.g., Roesch, 2020), the voices of Black and African American parents are comparably invisible. Therefore, this study aims to centralize the voices of Black and African American parents to inform current and future practices for supporting parents and children during COVID-19.

Methods:
This mixed methods study will occur once before the start of the 2021/22 school year and once after the start of the 2021/22 school year. Participants will complete focus groups interviews addressing three broad areas: general experiences related to parenting and family health during COVID-19; specific experiences regarding school during COVID-19; and recommendations for improving current and future school practices in supporting children and parents during COVID-19. Participants will also complete a series of questionnaires addressing the health and well-being of self and children, and perceptions of school climate.
Focus group data will be transcribed verbatim and coded inductively because there are no pre-existing codes on which to rely to help explain the supports parents and children need during this pandemic. We will generate reports of coded data and identify prevalent codes as the data are re-read to identify themes from coded data. This approach will allow us to generate grounded theory as we analyze and formulate an understanding of the educational and mental health needs which will allow us to formulate strategies for intervention.
Quantitative analysis will be employed to enhance qualitative analysis. We will calculate descriptive statistics (e.g., means, standard deviation) to identify levels of perceptions and functioning. We will analyze themes based on responses on questionnaires (e.g., high versus low levels of school climate, high versus low levels of depression, etc.).

Data Sources
A total of 50 individuals, who identify as Black or African American, with at least one child enrolled in a preK-12 school will participate in focus group interviews and complete the following questionnaires:

Adult PHQ-9 to assess parent depression
PHQ-9 parent to assess child depression
GAD-7_to assess anxiety
SDQ_Parent to assess strengths and difficulties of children
SCARED Parent to screen for child anxiety
School Climate for Diversity Scale to assess perceptions of school climate

Results
This study is currently on-going.

Scholarly Significance
Findings from this research will elevate voices of Black parents to inform school-based interventions and supports of Black children during this unprecedented time.

Authors

• Dana C. Griffin, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

• Marisa Marraccini, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

• Meghan Greene, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

• Maya Hardrick, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

• Maya Bracy, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill