Parents are “lost” as the Covid-19 pandemic has severely disrupted their children’s academic and social progress over the past two years.
Unfortunately, the uncertainty is set to continue.
Some parents had opted to take their children out of kindergarten or school following the recent surge in daily Covid-19 cases. Malaysia recorded 25,099 Covid-19 cases yesterday, of which 0.4 per cent (100 cases) were in Categories 3, 4, or 5.
Others wondered if their children were ready to graduate to the next level when the new academic year starts next month, and if they should purchase uniforms. It also remains unclear if students will learn within the four walls of a classroom or be forced to learn remotely.
“I think the Education Ministry needs to be decisive,” said Parent Action Group for Education (PAGE) chairman, Datin Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim.
She added the hybrid learning process in schools had yet to be perfected.
“We have not seen the end of this. It (the pandemic) may go on for years. The ministry doesn’t seem to be doing enough to close the gap over the learning loss,” said Noor Azimah.
“The students have just returned from the school holidays, and now, it’s back to the holidays again next week. What’s crucial, is to decide if the children will be learning online, or if the hybrid learning process will continue.
“Such a decision cannot be made a day before school opens.”
Parents and students faced a host of problems when online learning was first introduced. Some students had to share their gadgets with their siblings, while others faced poor internet connectivity.
Meanwhile, the Health Ministry is ramping up efforts to get those aged five and above to be vaccinated against the coronavirus. There was a sharp rise in school clusters after schools reopened early last month.
“Earlier, students were placed in groups, where one group attended classes, while the other, studied at home. Perhaps they should stick with it to lower the chances of infectivity among children,” said Noor Azimah.
“But some schools are double-teaching. The teachers should be teaching simultaneously. It’s a disaster waiting to happen, as instead of speeding things up, they are slowing down, more than ever before.
“I hope the ministry will also look into this,” she said.
Noor Azimah added parents also played a role in the academic and social progress of their children.
“Definitely, things are not normal. But there’s nothing wrong with taking children to the park or the beach. Have a small circle of friends that they can trust and rely on to ensure infectivity doesn’t happen.
“This is how parents can ensure their children continue to socialise and interact with others.”
Noor Azimah urged parents to knock on the ministry’s doors via their social media accounts, to make their voices heard.
“Parents can play a role in the academic bit, as well. They can work with teachers to find a workable formula.
“Parents should go to the minister’s (Datuk Dr Radzi Jidin) and ministry’s social media accounts and bombard them with questions, and perhaps, also offer solutions.
“Unlike in the past, where we had to wait for weeks or months to meet a minister or someone from the ministry, parents can now channel their views directly to them in a public domain and get instant feedback. It’s time we take advantage of this,” she added.
