The coronavirus pandemic has changed the way that everyone across the world views the education system. It’s undeniable that the virus has changed the way that we live our everyday lives. We now feel uncomfortable being too close to people in public and we can’t leave our homes without wearing proper protective gear. To make things even more complicated, those with young children are struggling to figure out education.
When the coronavirus pandemic became an alarming issue across the world, everyone needed to make drastic changes.
From quarantining at home to social distancing, governments all across the world were forced to mandate strict guidelines for everyone. This included closing businesses and schools to keep everyone safe.
While some businesses are able to close, schools cannot close completely.
The buildings may be unsafe for students and staff, but education has to continue somehow at home. Luckily, teachers everywhere quickly adapted their skills to ensure that no child would be without school during this time.
Many schools opted for “remote learning” in place of in-person schooling during this time.
All across the world, students logged onto computers daily to meet with teachers on an everyday basis to stay on task with their school work. While the technology we have today makes this attainable, it’s not very easy.
Often times, students struggle with online learning because they are not in-person, in a classroom.
Statistically speaking, children learn better when they are getting instruction in-person. The ability to see things happening in front of them is important. Additionally, they learn from peers and conversations and discussions in class.
Some parents have stepped in during remote learning to help their children at home.
Parents have acted as part-time teachers and sometimes even “peers” for their children during this time. Helping with homework, discussing readings, and fulfilling social needs are all imperative to a child’s growth.
It’s important to remember that distance, or “remote learning” is not the same as home schooling.
With remote learning, students have to work with their class and teachers on a virtual platform and ensure they keep up with classwork at someone else’s pace. However, home schooling can be altered and personalized to better fit the student’s needs at home.
Now, some parents are saying due to many realizations during remote leaning, they’re opting to keep their children home in the fall.
Regardless of whether or not their state decides to go back to in-person education in the fall, some parents are saying the home school model is what they want to choose entirely come fall 2020.
A recent poll found more than half of parents surveyed are considering a switch to at-home learning in the fall.
One mom, Tena Moore Crock, realized that the traditional education model doesn’t work for her 8-year-old son.
Tena told The Today Show that her eight-year-old son was logging on daily for his second-grade class, but she realized he wasn’t benefitting from the assignments. Instead, she began adapting things and creating her own lessons and assignments. She slowly saw that he was doing better with her “home school” model than he was with traditional schooling.
Other parents say that with the future of the virus so uncertain, they don’t want to hurt their kids further.
Samantha Taylor of Florida says she has a feeling schools will be, “on and off” next year with opening and closing. She thinks that keeping “consistency” for her three children is more important than sending them back to school.
However, Taylor is not looking to “home school” her kids and be their teacher. Instead, she wants to sign them up for a complete virtual school.
Whatever the reasoning is, it seems that more parents are looking into options for keeping their kids home for good next year.
Even if the year starts off remote and transfers to in-person, parents are weary on whether or not it’s the safest option, too. With everyone’s health at risk, it’s understandable to see just why parents are making these choices.
h/t: The Today Show
