Áhrif COVID-19 faraldursins á framhaldsskólanemendur : fjarkennsla, aðstæður og líðan nemenda

Abstract

Þegar heimsfaraldur vegna COVID-19 skall á vorið 2020 hafði það afgerandi áhrif á skólastarf um allan heim. Skólum var lokað, taka þurfti upp nýjar kennsluaðferðir á augabragði og kennarar og nemendur unnu heima vikum og mánuðum saman á vorönninni. Ljóst er að þessir atburðir höfðu mikil áhrif á nemendur, líðan þeirra og skólagöngu.Markmið þessarar rannsóknar var að kanna áhrif COVID-19 faraldursins á nám og líðan framhaldsskólanemenda á Íslandi eftir mikla röskun á skólastarfi í rúmt ár. Á vorönn 2021 var spurningalisti lagður fyrir nemendur í fjórum framhaldsskólum. Spurt var um upplifun nemenda af náminu, aðstöðu og stuðning heima fyrir og líðan á þeim tíma sem fjarkennsla fór fram. Þrír skólanna voru fjölbrautaskólar og einn hefðbundinn bekkjarskóli.Niðurstöður rannsóknarinnar sýna að nemendur höfðu gott aðgengi að tölvum til að nota í náminu og næði til að vinna heima. Þau höfðu góðan stuðning frá foreldrum og vinum og nemendum fannst kennurum almennt ganga vel að kenna á netinu. Nýnemar fengu frekar þá aðstoð sem þau þurftu við námið en eldri nemendur og þau fengu einnig meira utanumhald þar sem þess var frekar gætt að þau mættu í fjarkennslutíma og lærðu heima. Tæplega helmingur þeirra upplifði aukið námsálag og meirihluti nemenda upplifði betra eða svipað gengi í náminu. Um helmingur nemenda upplifði minni kvíða í fjarkennslu og tæplega fjórðungur upplifði meiri kvíða. Eins var um helmingur meira einmana en áður. Stúdentsnemendur í bekkjarskólanum fundu bæði fyrir meiri kvíða og meiri einmanaleika en stúdentsnemendur í fjölbrautaskólunum. Um helmingi nemenda fannst gott að mæta aftur í skólann aftur eftir samkomutakmarkanir en fjórðungi fannst það slæmt. Niðurstöðurnar sýna að fjarkennslan gekk að mörgu leyti vel en félagslegi þátturinn var erfiðari. Einnig sýna niðurstöðurnar að sameiginlegt átak skóla og heimila hélt skólastarfi gangandi á þessum krefjandi tímum og meirihluti nemenda lagaði sig mjög vel að breyttu fyrirkomulagi. Fjölmargar rannsóknir hafa verið gerðar á áhrifum COVID-19 á skólastarf víða um heim og margar eru í gangi. Þetta viðfangsefni verður án efa rannsakað áfram til að skoða hvaða áhrif faraldurinn hafði á skólastarf og hver langtímaáhrifin verða.

The COVID-19 outbreak, which began in the spring of 2020, had a profound impact on education around the world. Schools were closed, new teaching methods had to be adopted promptly and students and teachers worked from home for weeks and even months during the spring semester. This greatly impacted students’ well-being and education.The aim of this study was to examine the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the education and well-being of upper secondary school students in Iceland after this major disruption had been ongoing for over a year.A questionnaire was administered to students in four upper secondary schools in the spring of 2021. Students were asked about their experience of distance learning, their facilities, the support they had at home and their state of mind during the distance learning period. Three of the schools were comprehensive schools and one was a non vocational academic school. The findings of the study show the students generally had adequate access to computers for their studies and were able to work in peace from home. They had sufficient support from parents and friends and generally felt that online teaching was effective. Firstyear students received more help with their studies than older students. They also received more supervision as it was more strictly enforced that they attended online classes and studied at home. Almost half the students experienced an increased workload and the majority of students claimed better or similar progress in their studies. About half the students disclosed less anxiety in distance learning and almost a quarter more anxiety. About half the students said they were lonelier than before. Students in the academic school felt more anxiety and loneliness than the students in the comprehensive schools. About half the students were satisfied with returning to school but a quarter was not satisfied. These findings show that distance learning was successful in many ways, but the social aspect was a challenge. The findings also show that the joint effort of schools and homes kept education going during these challenging times and most students adapted well to the new conditions.Numerous studies have been conducted about the effects of COVID-19 on education around the world and many are ongoing. This topic will be further explored to see what the effects were and what lessons can be learned from them.