Survey finds students, parents, teachers worry for health safety, quality of education under distance learning

Results found on a survey conducted by a multi-stakeholder education movement tells that teachers, students and parents are still continuing to worry about their health and safety, reasonable access and the quality of education they are receiving under distance learning.

The Department of Education (DepEd) opened School Year (SY) 2020-2021 last October under a distance learning approach to guarantee that education still continues despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, students and teachers has experienced continuous challenges with the current set-up and several issues has sprang out that remain unsolved.

A survey conducted by the Movement for Safe, Equitable, Quality and Relevant Education (SEQuRe Educ Movement) in November to December last year reveals that 46.7 percent of teacher respondents thinks that DepEd hasn’t sufficiently guaranteed their safety and health protection, whereas 33.5 percent thinks DepEd has done its best.

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Meanwhile, an alarming 75.6 percent of student respondents feel that their schoolwork load under distance learning is heavier compared to before the pandemic. 

In addition, 54.7 percent of students said that distance learning activities have impacted their physical and mental health negatively. Parents have also affirmed that distance learning has wedged their family relationships in a negative way, survey of SEQuRe Educ Movement reveals.

Surveys on parents and students both show that about 71 percent to 72 percent of students have experienced failing to attend online classes due to problems with gadgets, internet connection, and distance learning expenses,

SEQuRe Educ Movement said.

Other points on the survey includes slow internet connection emerging as the biggest obstacle to online learning according to 87 percent of students while 9 in every 10 students have necessary gadgets for distance learning, where 7 use gadgets provided by local government units.

Other concerns also includes the struggles of parents, students and teachers with the cost of distance learning, low familiarity of parents with online learning and the lack of knowledge of students with the usage of various software that are needed in the online classes.

The quality of modules has also raised concern among parents, students and even teachers along with the uncertain assessment in learning, most especially in the printed learning modality.