Parent-teacher conferences amid COVID-19 outbreak
Hardly any of us can forget those bouts of anxiety when our parents come to school to meet our teachers face to face to discuss our performance. Waiting for your parents to tell you what your teacher said about you is one of the most unsettling feelings a student has to go through.
However, due to the outbreak of COVID-19 that discourages face-to-face communication, some Vietnamese parents have to attend online parent-teacher conferences powered by today’s online technology on the computer screen.
Image adapted from Vũ Anh Đức Hiền
A photo capturing a recent online parent-teacher conference of Dich Vong Secondary School in Hanoi has gone viral.
Face to face parent-teacher conferences are already nerve-wrecking for every parent as well, and doing it via a computer screen doesn’t ease the atmosphere at all. The tension is palpable on almost every online parent’s face.
Image adapted from Nam My Le
Some netizens hilariously commented about the palpable anxiety on the faces of the parents, while some wondered about the reactions of the parents if they heard about their children’s bad performance online.
Image adapted from Vũ Anh Đức Hiền
“Their children must be lying ready on the beds. Everytime the teacher recounts one bad deed they did, the parent would spank them,” Facebook user The Nguyen commented. He posted a funny picture from a K-drama with tears drawn on.
Many netizens joked about how conveniently parents could give their children a lesson right on the spot after the conference, without having to first travel from school to home – since they were already at home and easy to locate.
Approval and concerns
Other than hilarious and positive comments about online parent-teacher conferences, some also expressed their concerns for parents and teachers of schools in remote areas, where not many people have access to technology and online conferencing.
In the meantime, some netizens also praised the efficiency of this method.
Image adapted from Vũ Anh Đức Hiền
User Quang Anh commented, “Online parent meetings are convenient and safe. We don’t have to travel back and forth. This method should be implemented widely after the COVID-19 blows over. It saves time, reduces traffic jams, and cuts down on transportation costs. Very good.”
Teachers are doing the best they can
Even though most students in Vietnam do not go to schools these days and study from home, many teachers are still trying their best to monitor their students’ progress by texting students and their parents regularly. For primary school students, teachers tend to send homework and study materials to their parents via email or chat apps such as Zalo or Viber.
Even though this method may seem inconvenient for parents unfamiliar with technology, as long as they have smartphones or access to WiFi, taking some time to learn about a new software or app that lets them connect with teachers is a worthwhile way to level up their tech skills.
After all, parents also play an important role in their children’s online learning, especially for younger kids who need more personal attention. By communicating with teachers by videoconferencing and text, they can better support their children’s growth.
Also check out:
- We interview 17 Vietnamese people about how COVID-19 affects them
- Man in HCMC devises rope-and-pulley system to fetch his lunch order for social distancing
- 10 things visitors in Vietnam during the COVID-19 pandemic need to know
Cover image adapted from Vũ Anh Đức Hiền
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