Remote learning at 1 year: Experts explain why the move to online education has been so painful

Nearly a year has passed since Washington’s schools closed due to COVID-19. The state’s children are suffering a mental and behavioral health crisis so troubling that Gov. Jay Inslee has ordered educators to reopen their classrooms next month.

This crisis is the “result of the ongoing pandemic, which has been exacerbated by continued isolation, difficulty engaging with virtual learning, and lack of regular in-person interaction with educators, school personnel, mentors and peers,” states an emergency proclamation signed by the governor on Monday.