During the COVID-19 pandemic, a major educational shift took place-the transition from face-to-face instruction to remote learning. Although this transition impacted all learners, it is speculated that groups of vulnerable youth (i.e., those with neurodevelopmental disorders, in rural areas, from low-income families) would demonstrate significant difficulties with remote instruction. However, no work to date has investigated remote learning in these groups in rural settings. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to characterize remote learning experiences in youth with neurodevelopmental disorders from rural Appalachia. Forty-nine youth (aged 6-17 years) and caregivers who had previously completed a comprehensive psychoeducational assessment were contacted to participate in an online study during COVID-19 stay-athome orders. Youth and caregivers reported on psychopathology, emotion regulation and coping strategies, remote learning experiences, and demographics. A majority (87%) of students in rural Appalachia were not receiving the recommended amount of direct remote instruction. Indeed, a majority of school services received pre-COVID were not continued during remote learning. Greater child emotion dysregulation and parent psychopathology were predictive of remote learning difficulties and less engagement. Youth's adaptive coping abilities were predictive of greater total schoolwork per day. Parent employment was associated with greater difficulty with remote learning, but Individualized Education Program (IEP)/504 status and family income were not related to remote learning experiences. Results identified intervention leverage points, including improving adaptive coping and emotion regulation abilities, and reducing parent psychopathology and stress, to improve remote learning outcomes for youth in rural settings with neurodevelopmental disorders.
Public Health Significance StatementThe transition from face-to-face instruction to remote learning during the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders significantly impacted all students and likely impacted vulnerable youth at a disproportionate rate. Students with neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and learning disorders) in rural Appalachia were receiving less than the recommended amount of direct instruction and few of their pre-COVID school services (e.g., therapy, tutoring, and test accommodations). Improving emotion regulation and adaptive coping strategies in youth and decreasing parental psychopathology symptoms (i.e., anxiety and depression) and stress could improve student remote learning outcomes.
