Section 7: How the pandemic affected children’s mental health and wellbeing The greatest concern in free-text responses from parents/guardians and grandparents about school closures was the impact on their children’s social and emotional wellbeing, including mental health. The benefits of remote learning identified by some children are discussed in section 7.3(b). Experiences of returning to school are discussed in section 7.3(c). Key stakeholders identified disrupted education and disengagement from learning as risk factors for poorer mental health and wellbeing for children. (a) Challenges of remote learning Challenges about remote learning identified by children, parents/guardians and grandparents, as well as key stakeholders, are discussed in section 7.3(a). This included difficulties in getting support from teachers; need for more parental support; lack of structure and routine at home; difficulty focusing within the home environment; boredom; increased pressure on senior students; increased amounts of schoolwork; and increased screen time. When asked about their experience of remote learning, 38% of children said they found remote learning harder than learning at school. Only 16% preferred remote learning over faceto-face learning at school. Similar findings were reported in the 2021 Growing Up in Queensland report, where remote learning was described as the worst part of lockdowns by 27% of respondents aged 13–18.29 16% 30% 64 | This reflects research from YACWA that found culturally and linguistically diverse children and young people often struggled to learn from home because the school supports for those who speak languages other than English were not provided to the same standard or quality as they were in the classroom. This challenge was compounded for children who were also from low socio-economic or disadvantaged backgrounds as they did not have the technology or resources required to support their education.30 In this survey, some children from specific cultural or ethnic backgrounds wrote in freetext responses about the difficulties they experienced with remote learning: Figure 18: Children’s survey: what was your experience of remote learning like? 16% Some children found remote learning harder than others. 47% of children who mainly speak another language other than English at home, and 47% of those who come from a specific cultural or ethnic backgrounds reported finding remote learning harder than learning at school. I prefer remote learning at home over face-to-face learning at school (n=723) I found remote learning harder than learning at school (n=1743) I don’t know (n=737) Did not answer question (n=1356) 38% Children said they found remote learning challenging because it was difficult to get immediate support from their teachers; their parents were busy multi-tasking and were unfamiliar with the school curriculum; there was a lack of structure and routine; it was difficult to keep focused and stay on-task; and there were increased distractions in the home environment, including digital technology and social media. Access to appropriate technology was not raised as a significant challenge by many children completing this survey. This may be a result of the survey only being available online—meaning only those children with such access are able to complete it. Previous work conducted by the AHRC has indicated that access to technology for schoolwork is a serious concern for some children, including poor internet connection, the difficulties of setting up internet access when moving between households, and having to share devices and data with their siblings and/ or parents.31 A survey conducted by SNAICC with 243 participants showed that 11% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children did not have access to the internet, 3% had no phone and 3.5% had neither internet access nor a phone.32 ‘Mental health shapes my life’: COVID-19 & kids’ wellbeing • 2022 | 65