Parental Involvement on the Modular Distance Learning in Challenged Area: A Case Study

Education has undergone a radical change because of COVID-19. It completely altered the way we approach education. The gap in learning possibilities had already widened even before the pandemic, but it had widened more significantly in challenging areas. With the closure of schools, parents’ role becomes even more indispensable. Considering the unique difficulties faced by parents caring for their children at home during the lockdown, it is possible that these circumstances have either increased or created new difficulties for at-home parental involvement. Hence, understanding parents’ perspectives in terms of their involvement in their students learning during these unprecedented times was the focus of the study. This study presented three (3) cases through multiple case study methodological perspective. The three (3) participants (parents) were selected through purposive sampling on the following bases: (1) they were parents who have children enrolled in a challenged area like the remote or mountainous areas in the municipality of Calinog, Iloilo, (2) they were identified as parents who were actively involved in facilitating the learning of their children, and (3) were willing to participate in the research. Sources of data were interviews and observations from participants and significant other. The result of the study revealed that parents in challenged areas got involved with the modular learning of their children by creating time and opportunity for study, encouragement and through monitoring and discipline. The issues and challenges faced in parental involvement were, parents lack of knowledge, unpleasant behavior of children in answering the modules, working parents, and vulnerable to distraction. The strategies employed by parents in challenged areas in modular learning were constant update with the teacher, encourage simple routines and making use of available support systems.