Virtual school is causing stress for Ohio students and parents. A recent social media post by a local school highlighted a problem many parents are facing in these days of hybrid and all virtual classes in Scioto County, Ohio. Portsmouth West Elementary reminded parents on Facebook that if kids don’t complete their work, they could be turned into the truant officer just as if they’d failed to show up for an in-person class.
Many parents have expressed their frustration with the hybrid schooling model that has kids at the school building part of the week and learning at home for the rest of it. One harried mom proclaimed she was exhausted and couldn’t take it any longer. “I’ve got kids in five different grades. They refuse to do their work. The teachers call but I don’t know what to tell them.”
Parents Want Full-Time School
Other parents said Scioto County’s digital divide made virtual school impossible. “I have kids failing because they don’t have the access required to get hours of computer work done. I’m a full-time working mother. Do I buy 3 laptops add a $100 Internet bill or do I feed them clothe them? The last thing we should be doing is reporting parents for undone work.”
Another mom suggested it was time to have kids back in class full-time. “How about letting them go to school full time like other schools in the county? This one day a week at school and “virtual” learning isn’t doing them any good!”
Other parents stressed they work full-time jobs to support their families and can’t be home all day long. Others said their kids had special needs that required more attention. “My son WANTS TO BE BACK IN SCHOOL. He needs structure, one-on-one teaching, reading intervention, and an educational routine in place.”
Stressed Out
These parents are not alone. I spoke to a counselor who said these families are not alone in their stress. She said the agency she works for had “the longest waitlist of people they’ve ever had in terms of people wanting to get into counseling.”
Many parents are overwhelmed at taking over a job as a teaching assistant, something they’ve never trained for. “I talk to parents I tell them, if your child was able to wipe their own behind and know their letters and talk, you have what it takes to do this. You taught them those things.”
Unfortunately with Scioto County and Ohio’s COVID-19 numbers continuing to spike, it could be some time before kids are back in the classroom full time.
