Parents identify pros, cons of extended home-based teaching-learning programme

KUCHING (June 7): Many parents here support the Ministry of Education’s decision of continuing the home-based teaching and learning (PdPR) upon the reopening of the school term in Sarawak, in that this would help reduce the risk of their school-going children being exposed to Covid-19.

Earlier yesterday, Education Minister Datuk Radzi Jidin said the PdPR would be extended for 25 days upon the reopening of the school term this June 13 for Group A (Johor, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu), and June 14 for Group B (Perlis; Penang; Perak; Selangor; the Federal Territories of Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan; Negeri Sembilan; Melaka; Pahang; Sabah; and Sarawak).

“This (directive) applies to all schools, including public and private, expatriate and international schools, registered under the Education Ministry,” said the minister in a statement.

Mohamad Khairuzie Bolhassan, a 38-year-old manager, acknowledged the pros and cons of the directive.

“On one hand, it keeps my children safe from Covid-19, but on the other hand, it is also tough for parents who don’t have much time to monitor their children studying at home.

“I have three children who are on PdPR, and my wife is a housewife. It’s hard for her to handle all three of them and at the same time, do the housework and cook,” he told The Borneo Post here.

According to Mohamad Khairuzie, his Primary 2 and Primary 6 children have classes at the same time, while his youngest, aged six, receives homework via WhatsApp, which then needs to be printed out.

“It’s a struggle for my wife, having to monitor them during their classes.

“Moreover, the children’s concentration at home is only at 30 to 40 per cent, versus 60 to 70 per cent when they’re at school.

“We’re not teachers, but we try to help them at home, where there are many distractions like them wanting to play instead of studying. Perhaps it’s easier if the parents were teachers?” he said.

Civil servant Imelda Abd Karim, 49, agreed with the Education Ministry’s directive in view of the current Covid-19 situation.

“It is still not safe for everyone, since there are many sporadic Covid-19 cases and also the asymptomatic ones – they can just pop up randomly in the community,” said Imelda, who has a son studying in Form 5.

For Freda Aggan, children’s health, well-being and safety stood above everything else.

“Although it is undeniable that physical classes are more effective as compared to online classes, the proactive measure taken by the Education Ministry is crucial as lengthening the online PdPR would enable students to continue learning without the parents having to worry about the spread of the virus,” said the 47 year-old administrative officer.

Nur Atika Razali, 38, said she would feel much safer to have her two children – one in Primary 4 and the other in Primary 1 – stay at home during this period of the pandemic.

However, she also acknowledged the limitations in an online learning session.

“It is a one-way communication, as teachers only provide YouTube video links. If the children had any question, it would be hard for them to ask their teachers; it’s also hard for the teachers to respond.

“As a working mum, it’s hard for me to monitor them as I need to fulfil my work obligations, from 8am to 5pm. At the same time, I feel bad for parents who cannot afford to prepare the gadgets and high-speed Internet for their children’s PdPR. This could result in the programme not hitting its objectives,” said the quantity surveyor.

Nur Atika believed that to make the PdPR effective, cooperation between the teachers, the students and the parents would be a must.

Cynthia Jee, a mother of three, was among those strongly supporting the extension of the PdPR, in that there had yet to be any option for those under the age of 18 to be vaccinated against Covid-19.

“I prefer to let my children continue with their online classes as the Covid-19 cases continue to increase – there were cases reported from schools in the last term,” said the 45-year-old hotel manager.

As a mother, she said she was always worried about her children’s education, but ‘in this current war against Covid-19, life is more important’.

“Even with implementation of physical distancing in schools, there’s no guarantee that each of them is properly supervised and would follow the SOP (standard operating procedures),” said Jee, whose sons are in Form 4 and Form 5, while her daughter is in Primary 5.

Amanda Tay, 42, expressed sentiments similar to Jee, saying that under present circumstances, she did not feel safe to have her children attend physical classes at school.

“The school that my children go to upholds very strict SOP and as far as I know, the teachers are doing their part well.

“So, it is so much about my children’s schoolmates or classmates that I am worried about; it’s the lack of self-discipline among some parents,” said this accounts clerk.

However, Tay was also concerned about the effectiveness of the PdPR.

“My daughter is struggling in her transition from kindergarten to primary school, and she barely attended school last year.

“If given a choice, physical learning in the classroom is still more desirable,” she pointed out.

“This fight has been on for a long and difficult one and a half years – we hope everyone could play their part – always adhere to the SOP, enforce strict discipline and continue to stay at home; hopefully, our lives could go back to normal soon, our children could learn in a proper environment and they also got to enjoy a normal childhood,” added Tay.

Meanwhile, Fatin Nabihah Halmah said despite online learning being implemented in the interest of everyone’s health and safety, it had put teachers like herself in a difficult spot.

“Unlike in a physical classroom, teachers cannot monitor their students fully during online sessions – it (PdPR) may not be able to reach all students due to limited Internet connectivity in certain areas,” said the 26-year-old educator.

She also pointed out the problem of focusing during online classes.

“The environment between online and physical studies is very different. In online study, students need to be independent and practise strong self-discipline. They should be aware that they have priorities such as attending classes, completing their homework and avoiding distractions such as games or social media,” she said.

“My students do prefer physical schooling as it’s easier for them to understand the lessons and also to ask the teachers questions.

“They have told me that they have poor Internet connectivity, making online learning difficult for them,” added Fatin Nabihah.