The wellbeing of young people is regularly in the news and has been since the Covid-19 pandemic which put a huge strain on the mental health of young people, generally accredited to the isolation and lack of social interaction of the time. Education was affected with some schools going fully online whilst others sent out work packs and gave feedback on responses but the lack of engagement with their peers under these necessary conditions has been highlighted as being behind the issues than many children and young adults encounter today, five years on.
So, if social isolation from being away from their friends and peers and lacking the environment in which to develop social skills is one of the causes, how do online schools address the issue today?
All schools, whether traditional or online schools have a duty of care to their students though a comprehensive pastoral programme and the availability of trained and experienced counsellors but the issues that they deal with, whilst having some similarities also have many differences.
The chief difference is that traditional schools often have to manage relationships between students and groups of students in conjunction with exterior influences on a student’s wellbeing such as issues in the family whilst online schools have to ‘fill the void’ that is created by online education and provide opportunities for students to interact with each other and develop social skills. The difference in approach is that online schools recognise from the outset that there will be social isolation for a student studying five days a week in their room at home, often with parents out at work, and are proactive in their approach to overcoming the effects of this isolation.
Most online schools have a robust and proactive pastoral programme that checks in with students on a regular basis to talk, confidentially, about their wellbeing and most maintain a very strong care and concern network through their teachers to identify any issues that may be developing. This then leads to the counsellor becoming involved and a variety of appropriate measures being put into place, not only to monitor the impact but also to address the issues. This could be by encouraging friendship groups, allowing the student enough time outside of the online classroom to undertake activities with others in the physical world or by setting up a comprehensive programme of extra curricular activities that students will enjoy but also allow them to meet and chat in a less structured environment and make connections.
Many online schools arrange physical meet ups on residential courses to allow students to meet their friends in person and to enjoy time together. Elea High did just this last summer and will repeat the experience this coming year. a majority of our students joined us from all over the world on a trip to Cyprus where they enjoyed activities that encouraged them to work as a team. Given the comprehensive pastoral programme that Elea High delivers, it was not surprising that, from the start, the students interacted as if they were long time friends.
Yes, online education has the potential to be isolating but, depending on the school and its approach to socialisation and wellbeing, this needn’t be the case. For parents considering online education but worried about isolation, make sure you ask the questions that will give you a real feel of how well the school integrates students and what they do to promote inclusion and wellbeing.