Aim

To identify the impact of the Covid crisis upon students in second-chance schools, their living conditions, and expectations; and to show the reaction of these schools to the needs caused by the crisis.

Method

Quantitative and some qualitative results are provided from three surveys conducted in accredited second chance schools in Spain in the schoolyears 2020-2021 and 2021-2022. These are data gathered for a research contract with the Spanish Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, the Spanish Association of Second Chance Schools, and an R+D project funded by the Generalitat Valenciana. In the first two studies, we counted on data from 40 and 43 accredited second-chance schools, while in the third, we report data from 28 such schools. Students replied to these questionnaires, and interviews were conducted with headteachers and staff, as well as group discussions with students; with some questions focusing upon the impact of Covid on students, schools, work placements,living conditions, and expectations of students.

Conclusions

The results are commented in contrast with recent studies about the profile of youth attending these schools and they show that these youth, who was already in a vulnerable position before Covid, has suffered its consequences particularly in economic living conditions and to a lesser extent in terms of expectations. However, the way that schools reacted to the situation seems to have satisfied many needs of these students and their families, to a larger extent than the reaction of ordinary secondary schools.

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