They can’t wait for their turn, don’t want to share, and need constant reminders to finish their work: Survey reveals children are struggling at school, and so are teachers
Children sit in the garden at the Thakur Public School, Kandivli
Online classes did emerge as a superhero during the lockdown, but the transition back to traditional or offline schooling is proving to be a challenge for the teachers and educators. Responses from 2 500 teachers from across the city in a survey conducted by the Early Childhood Association (ECA) and the Association for Primary Education and Research (APER) revealed behavioural and learning issues/changes in students in early and primary school while transitioning from online to offline classes post-pandemic.
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According to the survey, 31% of all teachers interviewed said their students are unable to participate in collaborative activities, while 36% said their students are upset and anxious about everyday learning activities. Not only this but the teachers reported that the students were showing learning lags.
Teachers also reported that some students want their mothers to be with them or want to talk to their parents during class because they got accustomed to being with them during online classes. They were also raised with 'individual monitoring,' and they now require constant reminders to 'sit and finish their work.' According to the survey report, they also appear to require constant motivation, as parents were constantly prodding, helping, and praising them, which is now shared with a classful of children.
Swati Popat Vats
Elaborating on the survey, Swati Popat Vats- President of ECA-APER, a not-for Profit National Organisation said," It was through this survey, that we were able to understand that children are taking some time to adjust from online to offline classes. The majority of teachers who participated in this survey reported that children while teachers adjusted brilliantly to the rules of Covid Appropriate Behaviour (CAB), but that parents needed constant reminders about CAB."
"Many children have got more accustomed to their home milieu and the freedom to do as they please, and so they are finding it extremely difficult to adjust to rules and discipline. Teachers who took part in the survey stated that sharing, waiting for their turn, and waiting until a story or worksheet was finished has become difficult for many children because they were used to doing whatever they wanted during online classes. This means that impulse control and self-regulation skills are lacking, which are cultivated in a set routine that has gone haywire at home due to a variety of factors," added Vats, who is also President of Podar Education Network.
More from the survey
Many teachers reported that children got used to ‘individual monitoring’ by their parents and now need constant reminders to ‘sit and complete ‘their work. Discipline, the teachers say has become a challenge since the transition. A total of 31% of teachers reported that their students have difficulty sitting in one place and begin walking around the classroom as and when they please.
Anxiety is another factor that teachers have noticed, children get anxious when someone removes their mask, get upset when their pencil point breaks or when they have to leave the class to go to the washroom or outdoor play.
Observing students' behaviour in post-pandemic offline class 42 % of teachers experienced that students are taking a long time to settle in the class, while 48 % felt that the students were not willing to share their things and 41 % said the kids are not willing to wait for their turn.
"We also asked teachers if they see more anxiety, behavioural issues, and learning issues in boys or girls, and the answer was that there is no difference; both exhibit these issues. However, the difference is noticeable in children who missed online classes; these children take the longest to settle in school and "catch up on learning," Vats said.
As many as 32% of teachers reported that nearly 30% -40% of their students struggle with issues of focus and concentration in class, while another 18% said that over 50 % of their students have exhibited a lack of focus and concentration in class.
A total of 20% of the teachers interviewed reported that nearly 30% -40% of their students are experiencing learning lags in reading and writing, while 22% reported that more than 50% of their students are experiencing the problem. Whereas 18% of teachers reported that more than 50% of their students are experiencing numeracy learning lags.
Teachers also stated that they see some change in parent attitude and engagement too. Many of them are relieved that offline has started and now refuse to participate in any school activities saying that ‘now they are attending school’. Many also reported that some parents now want minute by minute accounts of what the child is doing and how the child is, as they were used to knowing all this online. "
Overall both parents and teachers reported that they are seeing children happier than online but learning and behaviour will take some more time to come back on track. Over 60% of teachers feel that students are happier, engaging and learning better than they used to during online sessions, while 21 % of teachers felt otherwise.
What schools are doing
Githa Sridharan, Center Head, EuroKids Pre-school, Ghatkopar said “The two-year quarantine has surely exacerbated the crisis of care and learning. With our children, we have seen various effects, such as a longer settlement period, separation anxiety, isolation, language barrier, aggressive behaviour, tantrums, lack of potty training, and even bullying. Teachers and caregivers took time to reassure that children listen to the given instructions and ensured they felt safe. During most of our settling period, we engaged children in decorating classroom walls, playing and talking, making them comfortable in their own space, being flexible with the use of our language, developing routines, and making them feel welcome.”
Sridharan added: "We have designed a special integrated program for our preschool children. This program ensures children get enough time to settle in and hone the skills essential for their academic preparations. The settling program highly focuses on social-emotional development, connecting with peers and teachers, and familiarizing themselves with the pre-school surroundings. We are offering enough activities to motivate them to come to preschool every day."
"While connecting the students to a plethora of learning avenues via the online mode it also made kids yearn for the actual physical environment in school ranging from simple things like meeting their friends in school, filling pages with notes and doodles etc. After the COVID norms eased and they were allowed entry into classrooms they could all come together and sit in, the younger ones found it a little difficult as writing practise was replaced with click and type, turning pages were replaced with scrolling, and questions and answers were replaced with chats. Basically, we all have an additional set of skills we gained through this trying time," said Shivani Singh, Vice Principal, Thakur Vidya Mandir High School and Junior College, Kandivali East.
"At Kangaroo Kids We are offering a hybrid model that is well-received by parents because it allows children to grow in with dual benefits. The offline classes allow them to socialize with their peers and develop social and interpersonal skills. Online classes, on the other hand, keep young children around their parents for strict supervision and ensure facilitating these sessions to their child," said Dhara Gogri, Center Head, Kangaroo Kids, Wadala.
Recommendations from the survey: What schools must do?
>> Focus more on the child than the curriculum. Emotional issues if not addressed or not addressed properly will impact learning and memory.
>> Take the parents into confidence and work together with them, don’t point fingers.
>> Train teachers to observe children as per their age and stage of development- remember there can be an almost 10-month difference between two children in the same class.
>> Don’t make parents or children feel guilty if they have not attended online classes.
>> Refrain from labelling children who are showing ‘learning lags’.
Duration of the survey- February 2022 to March 2022
No of the Teachers surveyed- 2500
No of pre-primary teachers - 1100
No of primary teachers - 1400
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