She states that the closure of schools caused enormous psychological harm, while in countries where schools remained open, mental health problems among young people were less severe. This demonstrates how essential education and a social environment are for young people's development.
As a result of the pandemic, young people were forced to spend a crucial stage of their development in isolation. In particular, the transition from secondary school to further education or work was abruptly halted. This had a major impact on their social and professional skills. Many young people missed important rituals such as orientation weeks, graduation parties and part-time jobs in busy work environments, which hindered them in developing social skills and learning to deal with structure and discipline.
Balledux points out that the pandemic not only exacerbated existing problems, such as performance pressure and the influence of social media, but also underscored the importance of a stable learning environment. She warns against too quickly viewing the consequences of the coronavirus as the sole cause of all young people's problems, as they were already under pressure before the pandemic.
Nevertheless, according to Balledux, it is important to recognize that young people will need not only opportunities to catch up in the future, but above all understanding and the space to grow at their own pace. Placing additional pressure on education or social activities to make up for missed experiences is not the solution. What young people really need is a supportive environment in which they can recover and continue to develop.
Balledux states that it is clear that, as a society, we need to consider how we can help young people thrive in the future, and that the coronavirus period has taught us that open schools play a key role in this. Providing sufficient space and support for young people in times of crisis will enable them to cope better with the challenges of the future.