Homeschooling has 'strained family relations', say majority of parents

Almost two-thirds of parents feel a strain has been put on their relationship with their child as a result of homeschooling. Picture: Larry Cummins

Almost two-thirds of parents feel a strain has been put on their relationship with their child as a result of homeschooling.

That’s according to a new poll carried out by RED C for Mental Health Ireland which also found 70% of children have had no social contacts outside of their immediate family during the latest lockdown.

Some 62% of parents polled felt a strain had been put on their relationship with their child as a result of homeschooling, with almost 70% voicing self-doubt as they compared themselves to other parents’ experience of homeschooling.

Two out of five parents said homeschooling had resulted in them sleeping and exercising less, while one in five admitted their alcohol consumption has increased as a result.

Three out of ten of those who are homeschooling are doing so while managing a full-time job at home.

A further one in three are leaving the home to travel to work, but having to home school afterwards.

“While families across Ireland continue to show great resilience and resourcefulness in coping with recent challenges, it’s telling that 70% felt that they weren't doing as well as other parents,” Martin Rogan, CEO of Mental Health Ireland said.

“These feelings may have been heightened by use of social media and scrolling through filtered images of tidy homes, smooth scheduling and productive afternoons when the reality is very different.” 

The Mental Health Ireland / RED C survey also found 70% of children had no social contacts outside of their immediate family during the latest lockdown.

Mr Rogan said that while schools have worked hard to respond to the challenges of homeschooling, 45% of respondents felt that there was no mental health or wellbeing content in the homeschooling lessons and this should be prioritised.

Dr Colman Noctor said the social isolation statistics for children are worrying

“When we conducted the survey, we were considering parental stress and what we found was 80% of parents were stressed, many with decreased sleep, exercise and increased alcohol intake,” Dr Colman Noctor, Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist and Board Member of Mental Health Ireland said.

“These indicators are worrying when we combine them with the fact that 70% of children had no social contact outside of the family home, with others having no live interactive contact from their school.” 

“The social isolation stats are worrying from a child development point of view and as we look towards the reopening of schools in the coming weeks we have to be aware of the impact of three months of social isolation for many of these children."

Yesterday, Barnardos warned that nearly 30% of its staff reported most or all children they work with have not been able to engage "whatsoever" with remote learning, with many teenagers finding it “very difficult to get out of bed or engage in any online learning."

The same number said they believe “many or all” of the young people they work with are at an increased risk of disengaging with the school system entirely.