Virtual Distance Learning: How Teachers and Parents/Guardians Can Help Increase Elementary School Students’ Engagement

Although distance learning has existed since the 1700s, it was not until the COVID-19 pandemic that the general public was introduced to it. UNESCO (2020) estimated that there are 290.5 million elementary and secondary students in 184 countries whose education was derailed as a result of school closures caused by the pandemic. Due to the suddenness of the situation, teachers along with parents/guardians had to find tools and resources in order to make sure that students could get a high-quality education during virtual distance learning. The key to achieving that is student engagement. Now that the general public has been exposed to distance learning, it might stay within our school system for good. In response to this situation, the question that drove this project was, H ow can teachers and parents/guardians of elementary students help increase students’ engagement during virtual distance learning? A study has shown that only 60% of students were active in distance learning, and of those, more than half were less engaged compared to before the pandemic (Barnum, 2020). This can result in learning loss which will vary depending on students’ access to support, tools, and opportunities to learn as well as individual differences during the school shutdown (Hill, 2020). Access to remote learning, the quality of remote instruction, home support and the degree of engagement are some of the factors that help determine the quality of learning for students (Dorn, 2020). When choosing the form of my project, I chose a website because it would be the most relevant and easy to access with today’s technology. The website contains relevant information based on my research that will allow teachers and parents/guardians of elementary students to gain knowledge and guidance that they might need to help increase students’ engagement during virtual distance learning. The goal of this project is to provide tools and resources for teachers and parents/guardians to help their children during this trying time. As my project contains information from both teachers’ and parents/guardians’ point of views, I’m hoping it can help them understand where the other is coming from and as a result, work together in making sure that students are highly engaged in their lessons. I intend this work will empower and motivate my target audiences by gaining knowledge and resources needed in helping their children during virtual distance learning