By February 2021, students weren’t just burned out—they were exhausted, mentally and emotionally. They needed relationships, support, and understanding. That is not what they received.

The plans to return to school didn’t offer much hope either. The regulations meant to keep them “safe” would actually prevent them from learning if they returned to buildings. Students would be sitting in classrooms, isolated and still glued to their computers. Nothing meaningful would change. But the system kept moving forward, pretending everything was fine, while many of our students were struggling just to keep going.

We need to stop denying how poorly our education system treated students during the pandemic. And we need to stop ostracizing and gaslighting the educators who care enough to speak up.

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