Educational institutions such as schools directly impact the relationship within families, especially during crisis moments. For instance, the COVID-19 pandemic became a major disruptive factor in numerous spheres, including the educational one. Thousands of students in the United States were forced to transition to remote learning due to the risks posed by spreading the virus. As a result, such an arrangement made many parents dissatisfied since it affected families in negative ways. Although the COVID-19 pandemic has subsided, it is important to analyze how it affected the relationship between educational institutions and families.
As mentioned above, one of the primary effects of the pandemic on the educational sphere was the decision of many schools to shift to remote schooling. The idea of learning at home was perceived positively by parents and students at first. The practice was consistent with the medical guidelines of social distancing and allowed students to avoid spending time in crowded places and thus risking contracting the virus. Moreover, remote learning kept families safer because it reduced the probability of one family member getting the disease. Thus, remote learning became extremely popular during the first months of the pandemic and, in some schools, continued for a long period of time afterward.
At the same time, the two main problems that arose due to the transition to remote learning were the growing number of depression cases among students and strained relationships between children and their parents. First of all, research shows that remote learning became a major factor contributing to the worsening of the mental health of children who had to spend their time at home (Li et al., 2021). The lack of communication with their peers and the limited physical activities negatively impacted their psychological well-being. Moreover, there is evidence that the quarantine negatively affected family members’ relationships (Imran et al., 2020). Essentially, parents and children began to have more conflicts and argued over different issues. Thus, the decisions of the educational institutions, namely schools, had a direct negative effect on the well-being of students and their interactions with parents.
In order to solve the problem, a comprehensive solution could be introduced. For instance, schools had to hire more counselors and provide assistance to children who reported being depressed or having anxiety (Meherali et al., 2021). Additionally, schools had to conduct surveys among students and their parents in order to determine how successfully they coped with the new circumstances. Alternatively, schools could offer in-person learning opportunities to those students who could no longer stay at home. Yet, such a procedure would be possible only in the case if the local laws would allow it. Nevertheless, the core of the solution had to be the extensive work of counselors with students and parents.
Close cooperation between educational institutions and family units is the key to the successful performance of children and a healthy environment at home and school. The pandemic demonstrated how changes made by schools could have a significant impact on the mental health of students and their relationships with parents. In order to prevent such negative effects in the future, educational institutions need to cooperate closely with families to devise plans of action that would be favorable for both parties. The relationship between institutions and families is necessary because it can provide benefits for everyone involved.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced numerous schools to switch to remote learning, which ultimately harmed students’ mental health and caused family conflicts. In order to solve such an issue in the future, schools have to cooperate with families and provide quality psychological assistance to children and family members affected by quarantine. Building strong cooperation between educational institutions and families is important to ensure that both parties benefit from their interactions.
References
Imran, N., Aamer, I., Sharif, M. I., Bodla, Z. H., & Naveed, S. (2020). The psychological burden of quarantine in children and adolescents: A rapid systematic review and proposed solutions. Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences, 36(5), 1106–1116.
Li, X., Vanderloo, L., Keown-Stoneman, C., Cost, K., Charach, A., Maguire, J., Monga, S., Crosbie, J., Burton, C., Anagnostou, E., Georgiades, S., Nicolson, R., Kelley, E., Ayub, M., Korczak, D., &, Birken, C. (2021). Screen use and mental health symptoms in Canadian children and youth during the COVID-19 pandemic. JAMA Network Open, 4(12), 1–14.
Meherali, S., Punjani, N., Louie-Poon, S., Abdul Rahim, K., Das, J., Salam, R., &, Lassi, Z. (2021). Mental health of children and adolescents amidst COVID-19 and past pandemics: A rapid systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(7), 3432–3443.