Online Teaching from a teacher’s viewpoint

Some children have adapted well and are enjoying the freedom and independence that online learning has afforded them. However, some children have not adapted and are not coping at all. They miss the personal connection and interaction with the teachers, and they miss the routine. Tears and tantrums have become the norm and a sense of being a failure has invaded their thoughts and subconscious. They fear not understanding the work and disappointing their parents. This has led to the parents taking over and doing the work for the children, which in turn cements their thoughts of being incapable of doing it for themselves and adding unnecessary pressure on parents. 

Coupled with the stress of online learning, is the anxiety and uncertainty of the pandemic that we are facing. As adults and parents, we are stressed and anxious about finances, about the safety of our families and the future. Our children pick up on snippets of conversation that they hear, our anxiety and our stress and they in turn internalise it and their fear becomes a beast that they cannot control. We need to be aware of not feeding the beast but relieving their fears and anxiety around the pandemic and their safety. 

As online continues, you will probably see an increase in your child’s tantrums and emotional behaviour. They are feeling overwhelmed by all they are seeing and hearing. Teach them the correct protocol for returning to school and being in public, but do not frighten or overwhelm them with too much information about deaths and statistics of other countries. Children find it challenging to deal with all this information and it adds to their fear of losing family members and loved ones. Often children who are acting out just need you to put your arms around them, cuddle them and tell them that all is going to be okay.  

When lockdown is over and the children return to school, teachers will play catch up and get the children to where they need to be. This is our super-power – we teach. What we cannot do is fill a child’s emotional bucket and soothe their troubled minds. That is a parent’s super-power. Do not be so focused on online learning that you forget to focus on your child’s emotional and mental wellbeing. Reassure them and make sure that they understand that they do not have to carry the burden of the pandemic, they need to be children and play, read, listen to music and feed their souls. Allow them to step away from their devices when they feel pressurised and to spend some time in the garden, reading or just talking to them. 

We are all in this together and we will get through this. Teachers will get your children to where they need to be academically, you need to keep your children mentally and emotionally stable so that they can return to school ready to learn.