By: Lawrence Simmons
The COVID-19 virus has changed and altered life as we knew it for nearly a year. It has negatively impacted everyone with strict safety restrictions in many ways and different reasons, despite some minor changes made throughout the time. As much as it has become an inconvenience for us, it has equally affected children’s lives, particularly their education. Most educational institutions have closed their doors indefinitely and resorted to online learning at home. Some might get lucky enough to physically attend an open school, with safety guidelines and restrictions set in place. Some schools have even tried reopening but eventually decide to return to learning and working from home. It can get quite stressful for everyone, as others may have conflicts to face.
On the other hand, parents have even more problems to face than their children, or possibly worse, in this matter. Last August, half of working parents said that full-time remote learning would hinder their work schedules. Though some jobs/careers include the safety advantage of working from home, it may overload them with too many responsibilities, leading to feelings of stress and exhaustion at the end of the day. However, the parents who have jobs that do not allow them to work from home have even more potential problems to face. It can leave them heavily concerned with how their kids perform academically with online learning, alongside other issues that even their children are forced to deal with, specifically concerning technology-wise.
Parents would be held accountable for ensuring that their children have the appropriate materials to attend online learning, like an accessible and operable computer webcam and microphone for virtual meetings. They also must make sure that bills, such as for the internet, are paid on time. Besides that matter, parents should ensure that they have an excellent internet connection to avoid interruptions throughout the school day. They should also be certain that their kids have all of the requested and required school supplies, even from home. Aside from this, parents should keep track of how they are doing in school, both online and verbally. In some cases with children, it is best to confirm that they are doing online school and not anything else, for example, procrastinating.
Apart from the responsibilities that both parents and students may have to face, there is also the chance of instructors themselves coming across issues from their end, especially on the technical side. They might experience poor internet connections or even problems with microphones/webcams, making their job difficult. There is also the situation where others participating in the virtual meeting may not pay attention to the instructor due to poor reception on either or’s end, causing the Zoom meeting to occasionally or frequently delay or buffer. The teacher then may have to heavily repeat certain things they have already said in these circumstances or just in case. The lateness of other students joining a meeting can also be another troubling concern on its own.
Schools should accommodate parents, likewise those caring for their children, with the proper technology materials needed for at-home learning, should there be a family who cannot own or afford them. While we all wait for life to change for the better and eventually all educational institutions to reopen safely, we must find a solution to help ease both parents and their children during these challenging times.
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