“You never realize how important something is until it’s taken away from you. This holds true with the countless scenarios of students being quarantined for two weeks, just like I was,” said Adam Loker, a senior at Wayne City High School who was quarantined due to a positive case in his home.

Across the globe, schools everywhere are facing the unrelenting effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Due to these effects, administrators and staff in schools are taking extra steps to maintain safety for all students. However, as simple as it sounds on paper, there are far more effects of these health precautions than anyone had ever expected. The demand for safety gives way to a new problem: students being removed from school for weeks at a time, some unsure of when they’ll finally be able to return. Forced quarantining may be presently prioritizing health, but is also giving way to the after effects of removing students from the classroom setting. Students are quarantined for up to 14 days after sitting within six feet of a peer who tested positive, exhibiting any symptoms, or even after someone in the same home as them exhibited symptoms. With many of these circumstances common, students being forced to quarantine is not a rare scenario, which leads to the question that many teachers and parents have had from the beginning: how will forced quarantining affect students’ grades, mental health, and overall academic success?