The impact of COVID-19 on the wellbeing of school communities

Through a series of one-to-one interviews in Ireland, this study highlights the central role that schools have played in supporting their local communities and the value teachers place on their relationships with students and families during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many teachers and school leaders found themselves grappling with new identities and professional boundaries as they worked to support, care for and connect with the students and families they serve. There was considerable concern expressed regarding the plight of vulnerable or marginalised students for whom the school ordinarily offered a place of safety and security. Read the article by two members of the SHE research group, Catriona O’Toole and Venka Simovska.