Exploring family-school partnership during emergency remote teaching in the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic – parents’ perspective. A case study from a Polish elementary school

Abstract

The study aimed to explore parents' experiences of engaging with their children's remote education during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the issues of the family-school partnership. The question posed here asks how the family-school relationship was negotiated as well as the role of parents and the role of schools. This line of inquiry is unexplored but vital to understand better the tacit underpinnings of remote education practices and the unobvious potential of parents in the schools in times of crisis. Understanding these relationships provides insights into the processes that occur when schools hastily change their way of teaching while impacting the family environment. This participatory, qualitative case study used data from open-ended questions in an electronic survey, with responses from 104 parents affiliated with a public elementary school in a metropolitan area. In addition, data from the school's electronic registry were included. The qualitative analyses applied constructivist grounded theory strategies. During qualitative analyses of parental narratives, categories were identified that described parents' actions as negotiations conducted with the school. These negotiations pertained to the definition of the situation (characterizing the practices implemented by the school), the comprehension of teaching, including remote teaching, the level and nature of the parents’ involvement in pandemic education, and the extent of their (desired) influence on the shape of implemented solutions. The research uncovered the taken-for-granted vision of the school under the study as an expert entity capable and entitled to independently address even extraordinary challenges without consulting the stakeholders themselves. This vision was challenged by parents. Their initiation of negotiations was considered a manifestation of empowerment and emancipation. Further research on empowering practices of parents as partners, especially concerning changes in educational practices in extraordinary situations.