When the coronavirus disease entered our lives as a global epidemic, it brought uncertainty and anxiety. While the epidemic forced school children and their parents to introduce the concept of distance education, this process was welcomed easily by some families, but was very difficult for others. Almost everyone has difficulty coping with uncertainty and anxiety. With distance education, new concerns have emerged among parents and students who were part of formal education until the epidemic. Now hybrid, that is, blended learning, will enter our lives, in this model, there is talk of resuming face-to-face education as well as distance education. How will this process affect students and their parents? requires time. Now there are new factors to get used to. Moreover, there is an education model that is unknown and not yet finalized. In fact, when we think about the epidemic and its effects, it is normal to feel a certain level of anxiety and it is functional to protect ourselves. It is important not to be completely anxiety-free but to keep it at a protective level.
When we examine the anxiety situation, the thoughts in the parents' minds are divided into two; Concerns about health status, protection, precautions and concerns about educational life and quality. If you, as a parent, are concerned about health, listen to the questions in your mind. Are you thinking, "What if my child gets infected with the virus?" Instead of focusing on this thought, focusing on the thought "What can I do to help my child protect himself?" is a good start. When we cannot differentiate situations that we cannot control, we move away from what can be done for our children, step by step. Thoughts of what I can do and what my child can do make parents' attitudes towards their children more positive. You may not be able to find an answer to the question "What can I do?" In this case, getting support from teachers, the school and gaining knowledge about the subject may be the first steps. When it comes to concerns about the quality of education, "Can my child learn this way, what if he falls behind?" is one of the most frequently asked questions. You can learn what you can do to achieve this by getting support. Don't forget to remind yourself that; all the Children will receive education under similar conditions and this new education model will be valid for everyone.
There will also be health concerns for students in the new school life that will begin, but this may not be the only psychological distress they will experience. They had a long education period in which they stayed at home and could not socialize. While they are excitedly waiting for schools to open, they may be avoiding it. They may have moved away from their study routine and may experience difficulties in their success levels during the semester, which may affect your child as a stress factor. On the other hand, students will have to study with protective measures, completely outside the order they are accustomed to, and while relationships at school are important from a developmental perspective, they will experience this in a limited way. In other words, many students who experience negative and positive emotions at the same time and want to go to school will hesitate or even resist going to school. When you realize this, it is important to support the coping skills your child has so that he can move on with challenging emotions. This is where parental attitudes come into play, ask how your children feel about going to school, listen to their feelings. You may not be able to eliminate the problem, you can only state that you understand it and share that you are aware of the difficulty of the situation. You can ask if there is anything you can do.
Everyone encounters challenging situations and uncertainties from time to time in life, and you have probably dealt with many situations so far. Humanity has gradually learned to cope with this new situation and continue to live, and we continue to learn. If the adaptation process is challenging and takes a long time for you or your child, or if your child has difficulties in emotional management, you may consider getting support from the school guidance units or an expert.
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