602
Views
3
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Articles

Social class, COVID-19 and care: Schools on the front line in Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic

, , , ORCID Icon, ORCID Icon, ORCID Icon & ORCID Icon show all
Pages 452-466 | Received 09 Jan 2022, Accepted 24 Jan 2023, Published online: 27 Feb 2023
 

Abstract

Schools have a duty of care to children that extends beyond educational performance to include wellbeing and welfare. Yet, research has highlighted the tensions that arise when ‘care’ and ‘learning’ are treated as binaries, especially when schools operate within unequal socio-­economic conditions. Extended COVID-19 school closures brought these issues into sharp relief, highlighting the central role of schools as a front line service in the lives of poorer children. This paper provides qualitative insights into the classed experiences of extended school closure and the role and response of schools through the eyes of parents, teachers and principals in Ireland. We frame these responses in the context of the provision of a careful education, exploring the role of normative and affective relations in teaching and learning. Questions are posed in relation to schools as care regimes and the ‘mission creep’ between educational and welfare provision in schools serving poorer children.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 Children in the Irish school system start school in junior infant class and follow a transition journey to senior infant class, first and second class and then third, fourth, fifth and sixth class. Junior infant pupils are aged between 4 to 5 and third class children and aged between 7 to 8.

2 Nonetheless the sample has representation of all family types.

3 All names used are pseudonyms.

4 CS denotes case study in each of the interview participant descriptors.

5 The School Meals Scheme provides funding towards provision of food services for disadvantaged school children

Log in via your institution

Log in to Taylor & Francis Online

PDF download + Online access

  • 48 hours access to article PDF & online version
  • Article PDF can be downloaded
  • Article PDF can be printed
USD 53.00 Add to cart

Issue Purchase

  • 30 days online access to complete issue
  • Article PDFs can be downloaded
  • Article PDFs can be printed
USD 638.00 Add to cart

* Local tax will be added as applicable

Related Research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.