We are all in an abnormal situation and it will never be the same. The psychological well-being of children is also affected with the “new normal” educational set up. Researches shown that some students found the workload “too high”, missed interactions with peers, felt their thinking ability was impaired, and reported a difficulty coping with study and life more generally. While learning from home, some children experienced heightened anxiety, stress and other emotional reactions such as depression.
The issue lies not only in the way these children are receiving instructions and teaching itself. Children needs more than just learning materials and interactive activities. They need to be guided and trained of what their current context it. Scientifically, they lack what we call the autobiographical episodic memory. It is the brain’s record of our experiences. It includes what we’ve done, the contexts during which we did it, and the way we did it. It also contains the emotions we link with events and the way motivated we were. When we use this memory, it tells us what to expect in different setting and how to cope up with different situations.
The experiences of children in school are all stored in their memory and they operate and work according to these memories. This is where the problem arises. Despite the complete support from school and family these kids cannot put themselves in the current context. The distance learning or the study from home gives these children a cap where in they knew what is missing but they cannot naturally react to it because they don’t have a memory to match this current context.
However, this case is different for every student. There are children who had more adaptable episodic memories at home that is why they find the distance learning more valuable.
This episodic memory plays an important part in the different experiences of children and how they learn. It is therefore important that teachers and school to consider this case and create actions that will address this finding. Learning materials should be useful and relevant at home so that students can appreciate it more and eventually adapt to their current situation.
By: Mary Joy S. Dela Cruz | Teacher III | Boton Elementary School
