Grounded in the literature on peer social capital, this study examines middle school students' perspectives on COVID-19-related changes in their peer interactions and friendships. Qualitative analyses of 146 students' survey responses showed that a majority experienced changes in their peer interactions and friendships. These students reported:…

This study examines emotional well-being variations among students (n = 13,398) across 5 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Secondary analysis is conducted using data from the "Responses to Educational Disruption Survey" (REDS), which focused on the pandemic experiences, including well-being, of 8th-grade students. The study…

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many Texas students stayed home and learned virtually for portions or the entirety of the 2020-2021 school year. TEA (2021b) reports indicated virtual learners scored lower than students who returned face-to-face on many assessments. Research question one asked what are the perceived factors that affected 8th-grade…

This quantitative research study used correlational statistics to explore if a relationship exists between compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue levels in 6-8 educators and their decision to remain in the teaching profession. Data were collected using the ProQOL survey as the main instrumentation. Participants were recruited using social…

COVID-19 has permeated news since December 2019 and has impacted all areas of life. Despite widespread coverage of COVID-related risks, there is limited understanding of adolescent resilience in Global South contexts (e.g., Africa) and against the backdrop of COVID-19. We, therefore, conducted a qualitative secondary analysis of 79 documents…

Targeted school-based programs seem to be a promising approach to help adolescents in need. Nevertheless, successful implementation and evaluation of such programs is challenging. However, there is limited knowledge about (overcoming) the challenges of implementation and experimental evaluation of school-based programs. The goal of the present…

In this article, the authors share an account of an eighth-grade personal narrative unit designed to support students in composing accounts of life during the 2020-21 pandemic school year. The article provides an overview of the four phases that comprised this nine-lesson unit and the materials and resources used. Students' voices, perspectives,…

In 2020, the world was forced to adjust to a new normal with the global pandemic. Every nation had to make difficult decisions to protect citizens and save their economy. Leaders of all institutions had to strategize quickly for an unknown future. Many institutions suffered, including education. Social-emotional learning addresses students'…

Background: Maintaining physical distancing is one of the most important steps to enforce in educational institutions to reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19. However, close proximity and physical contact between students are often considered 'normal' during physical education (PE) classes, making it challenging for PE teachers to ensure…

Undoubtedly, one of the areas most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic process was educational activities. In this study, the 33 eighth graders of a public elementary school in Turkiye were observed for a six-week online learning period. The aim was to obtain whether any changes occur in their geometry attitudes during the process and to reveal…

Globally, schools were faced with mandatory shutdowns in the wake of the recent COVID-19 outbreak. To avoid disruption in the education process, teachers and students used alternative education strategies and solutions, switching to emergency remote teaching and learning (ERTL). This change was completely unanticipated, and thus can only be…

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the moderating effect of technology use for friendship maintenance in the associations between self-isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic and friendship quality, measured 6 months later (Time 2). Participants were 1,567 seventh and eighth graders (51% female; 51% white; M[subscript age] = 13.47)…

This study aimed to explore if there was a significant difference in student performance in ELA and Math in middle school grades six through eight, pre- and post-COVID-19. This study aimed to identify student performance deficiencies in grades six through eight relating to gender, socioeconomic status, and race. The significance of this study is…

This study examined differences in middle school English Language Arts (ELA) proficiency between pre-pandemic (2019) and post-pandemic (2022) assessments to understand the COVID-19 impact on learning, particularly among vulnerable groups. Grounded in adaptive leadership theory, the research focused on free and reduced-price lunch (FRL) and English…

Anxiety disorders have been on the rise among adolescents over the past decade. The COVID-19 pandemic appears to have contributed to this increase, putting further pressure on often already overburdened health systems. Universal prevention programs may offer a potential solution, but few have been evaluated in the context of a pandemic. The…