Opinion | How Hong Kong parents and children can survive and thrive during online learning
- It is understandable that children will have more difficulty with online learning, where many of their psychological needs aren’t met. Parents must realise that grades do not predict children’s career prospects and sidestep power struggles over homework
For working parents, who spend their days enjoying the success of managing projects, driving sales or providing professional services, it is extremely frustrating to not be able to accomplish the seemingly simple task of having a six-year-old sit still and finish his homework. Having young children do as they are told seems like mission impossible.
Is there a magical strategy that parents can use so that children will listen? Perhaps understanding the dynamic that drives the homework struggle can help us approach our children differently.
First, a young child’s world is still very sensory driven. The school environment is clearly more stimulating than a flat screen. Young children also need structure, which again the school environment provides. They also fill their relational cups from interacting with teachers and peers at school.
So it is understandable that children will have more difficulty with online learning, where many of their psychological needs aren’t met.
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Hong Kong secondary students learn online amid coronavirus fears
Second, most parents use grades to evaluate their children. Grades are not understood as snapshots of how children perform at a particular time, but misconstrued as predictive: an overall representation of how smart and capable their children are and how well they will do in the future.