Publication date: Jul 01, 2025
COVID-19 created unprecedented disruption for school-age children and adolescents across the United States. This educational disruption was significant for American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) students. Our study’s purpose was to understand COVID-19’s impact on AI/AN adolescents’ education and their physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual well-being, as well as their coping mechanisms. We employed a qualitative descriptive design with 14 AI/AN adolescents aged 14 to 18 years among three Tribes in the Great Plains in August 2023. Our participants reported several disruptions, yet they found unique ways to stay connected. The themes identified were social network, physical activity, emotional well-being, gaming, responses of reservation schools to COVID-19, and challenges of virtual learning. There is a lack of focus on the resilience and protective factors among rural AI/AN adolescents. Understanding how these factors may enhance AI/AN well-being is essential for providing culturally responsive care and promoting healthy growth and development.
Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| disease | MESH | COVID-19 |