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We are all amidst a global pandemic but the world seems to be surviving. Can you imagine surviving such a situation without technology? It seems scary or even impossible to think of. But thanks to the advancement of technology, everything we need or desire is just one finger tap away. Even with the novel coronavirus taking over the world, companies are continuing their work while following quarantine. Employees can work from the comfort of their homes with just an internet connection and a laptop or desktop. Colleges are conducting online classes so that students do not miss out on completing their academic year. During this time, parents everywhere are concerned about their children’s education and the methods schools are adopting during this pandemic.
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While it makes a lot of sense for high school kids and college going students to have online classes, parents are concerned if the same logic can be applied to younger kids. Children above the age of 10 years are familiar with technology and screens because of the wide usage of screens in their schools, homes, and even their playtime. Many children have learned how to use the internet for their assignments and daily homework to make their lives easier. However, parents wonder if the steps taken by schools to implement online classes for children below the age of 10 is turning out to be futile.
The Parents’ Concerns
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While parents might not always agree that there are innumerable advantages to technology, this is the time where they all agree that it is a boon rather than a bane. If it wasn’t for online classes, continuing the next academic year for kids everywhere would have been a problem. It would have pressed pause on education and children would have been delayed by at least one year. However, because of various methods being adopted by schools, children can participate in online classes without having to risk going out of their homes and being exposed to the deadly virus.
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But what about the kids who are too young to understand what’s happening behind a screen? Parents are concerned that kids who are below the age of 10 find it difficult to focus their attention on the teachers through a screen. These kids are at an age where they get distracted easily and parents are finding it hard to keep them engaged with what is being taught.
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As kids who are used to face to face interaction, active learning, and experience-based education, it becomes difficult for them to concentrate on a screen that has faces of their friends popping up. The president of the Early Childhood Association, Swati Popat Vats, says that engagement is more important than learning for children in such a situation. She further says concentration cannot be forced on kids and they have to be transitioned into screen time routine. Many parents noticed that the kids were quite excited for the first couple of days but over time, they found that it started becoming a difficult task to keep them interested.
What Can You Do?
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Because of the uncertain times we live in, schools are trying to engage with the students in whichever way possible. But the problem here is that, with kids below the age of 10, it becomes quite tedious to get through to them. A few ways in which they can tackle such an issue is to reduce the number of kids they are interacting with daily so that the children are less distracted. So, schools could probably come up with a system where each kid has to attend an online class twice or thrice a week, just to be evaluated on their progress. This way the kids get to show the teachers what they have learned which will keep them more engaged than if they have to just listen.
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Another way could be for the teachers to instruct and guide the parents to teach their kids some of the curricula so that the kids learn it first hand with a face to face experience. Surely, these are just temporary solutions and we are all hoping that things get back to normal soon. Comment below and let us know what you think.
