The course that ended in June, the first full one that has been experienced in a pandemic, has been especially hard for Spanish parents , even more than for those from the rest of Europe. This has been confirmed by a survey of the parents of 3,000 Spanish, French, German and Austrian students, carried out by the GoStudent platform, to detect how they have lived their children’s last school year.
Among the most common and forceful conclusions: up to 70% claim to have generated stress when trying to reconcile their professional life with their children’s education in a year in which school attendance has been quite unstable, in some countries more than in others.
Different studies have tried to find out how teachers and students have adapted to this past pandemic course, but little is known about parents, the third main actors in a totally atypical situation. They too have had to adapt, many times telecommuting and helping their children with online classes. Fortunately, this situation was less frequent than was believed in Spain and it was very hard in neighboring countries that have experienced school closures for weeks and months.
The EdTech online private tutoring platform has wanted to feel what the perception of parents in Europe has been and the results speak of common problems, but also of the positive points that the pandemic has brought to families.
“Little acceptance of the Spanish educational system”
Among the most negative points, the bad concept that Spanish parents have about how their children have been taught in the last year and claim that children’s school performance has dropped: only 40% of parents claim to be satisfied with teaching . But disappointment with the education system is greatest in Austria-Germany (49%) and France (42%).
Technology has made it possible to follow classes from home, but up to 30% of Spanish parents have felt that the support from the school and teachers has not been enough. Among the reasons for this statement:
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Lack of interaction between teachers and students (51%).
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Shortage of online learning platforms (42%).
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There was no motivation on the part of the teachers (41%).
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Need for more learning materials (36%).
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There was no interaction with other parents (20%).
However, Spanish parents have felt more supported than those in the rest of Europe : 51% of French parents have not noticed this support from schools and teachers, a figure that reaches 58% in the case of Germans and Austrians .
The stress that Spanish parents have also felt, although very high, has been lower than in other countries: in France, Austria and Germany it was 80%, 10 points higher than in Spain.
Direct impact on children’s mental health
This school year has not been easy for anyone, least of all for our children. The uncertainty, schools closed occasionally or the school environment itself, with masks and safety distance as the main protagonists, has had a direct impact on students.
The mental health of French children has also worsened this school year (47%), somewhat less than that of Austrians and Germans (51%).
Parents are optimistic for the next year
Regarding the effort of their children, parents give them an average score (7.2), while the French evaluate their children with a 7 on average, and the Austrians and Germans do it with a 6.8.
The grade is much lower for teachers, to whom Spanish parents do not give more than a six for their management, the same as French, Austrian and German. Of course: only 10% of those surveyed suspend them, while in France almost 40% of teachers suspend them , and in Austria and Germany this figure is 20%.
Optimism for the new course is greater in Spain than in its European neighbors. Only 36% of Austrians and Germans think that schools will function properly during the next school year and 50% of the French. However, Spanish parents believe that the next academic year 2021/2022 will be better in view of the progress of vaccination in our country: 70% of parents think that next year will be calmer.
Via | ABC
Photos | iStock
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