In some children with behavioral disorders, educators see many serious behavioral problems that weren’t necessarily present before, said Rebecca Hartzell, assistant professor of disability practice and psychoeducational studies at the UA College of Education.
It might be more important for these children to focus on socio-emotional needs than for academics right now, Hartzell said. Middle school students also missed a year that is essential to discovering interpersonal skills.
“It helps you find out how to resolve conflicts, how to navigate complicated schedules, and how to prioritize your leadership skills,” said Hartzell. “You develop all of this in middle school and then imagine taking a whole year of it. Some of that maturity must now take place in high school … but now you no longer have the middle school experience to build on. I have a feeling we are going to see some difficulties in social interaction, communication, and behavior. ”
Trujillo said that many of the students who just appeared out of nowhere are high schoolers, which could mean these students are left behind with credits to graduate with their cohort.
There are credit recovery programs for these students that will be essential in preventing kids from becoming discouraged and dropping out of high school, he said. TUSD, like all local school districts, offers expanded summer school programs to prepare children for returning to a full personal school year.
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