Education 3-13

International Journal of Primary, Elementary and Early Years Education

ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rett20

Difficult situations and ways of coping with them

in the experiences of parents homeschooling their
children during the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland

Teresa Parczewska

To cite this article: Teresa Parczewska (2020): Difficult situations and ways of coping with them in
the experiences of parents homeschooling their children during the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland,
Education 3-13, DOI: 10.1080/03004279.2020.1812689

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/03004279.2020.1812689

Published online: 29 Aug 2020.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 2247

View related articles

View Crossmark data

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=rett20
EDUCATION 3-13
https://doi.org/10.1080/03004279.2020.1812689

Difficult situations and ways of coping with them in the

experiences of parents homeschooling their children during the
COVID-19 pandemic in Poland
Teresa Parczewska
Institute of Pedagogy, Faculty of Pedagogy and Psychology, Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin, Lublin,
Poland

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

The aim of the research project is to present parents’ perceptions and Received 22 July 2020
experiences related to home education during the coronavirus Accepted 13 August 2020
pandemic, and the ways of coping with difficult situations, taking into
KEYWORDS
account sociodemographic factors. At the end of March and beginning Pandemic; difficult situation;
of April this year, a survey was conducted on a group of 278 parents home education; parents;
living in Poland – in a large city, small town and in the countryside – children
and affected by this problem. The findings indicate that a significant
group of respondents described the existing situation as difficult, and
the responsibilities related to home schooling as being beyond their
capabilities. Parents are generally not confident about their competence
and solutions they adopt; they express anxiety about the future of their
children. Significant differences were observed in the ways of perceiving
difficult situations and of coping with them with respect to gender and
place of residence. The undertaken research is important because the
voices of parents shed light on the problems of Polish education in a
crisis situation, and at the same time indicate the direction of necessary
changes.

Introduction
During the coronavirus pandemic, children’s education in the home environment1 – in Poland and
other countries around the world – is no longer the choice of parents. From one day to the next,
it became a necessity and even a duty.2 As of 18 April 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced
school closures in 188 countries around the world, severely disrupting the education process of
over 1.7 billion children and adolescents (Gouëdard, Pont, and Viennet 2020). At this difficult time
for all, on 20 March 20203 the Polish Ministry of National Education and school principals substituted
the traditional form of education with home-based education for 4.6 million students.4 This decision,
although necessary, completely disrupted everyday lives of most families and teachers. From one day
to the next, without any preparation, an additional role was imposed on parents: that of being ‘a
teacher’ for their child and an organiser of free time activities. Due to forced isolation, the learning
environment and the nature of educational interactions radically changed. These play an important
role in the cognition process, not only due to discovering new knowledge and the construction of
certain intellectual structures, but also due to the socialisation aspect (Berger and Luckmann 1983;
Pokropek 2013; Sztejnberg 2006). Learning understood as a cognitive activity which has the
nature of the reconstruction of meanings takes place on three levels: cultural, interpersonal and indi-
vidual (Schaffer 2005), among which the interpersonal level is fundamental. According to Vygotsky

CONTACT Teresa Parczewska terpar@wp.pl

© 2020 ASPE
2 T. PARCZEWSKA

(2000), mental development takes place thanks to the learner’s active participation in many different
forms of social activity, which allows them to learn and master procedures, norms and rules that will
later allow for independence and autonomy of action. In the idea of the classics of social constructi-
vism (Wygotski 2000, 2006; Bruner 2010), effective learning occurs in a social context through the
exchange of views, joint problem-solving, negotiating meanings, and group discussion. The school
as an institution is a very important place for collecting social experiences. Through internalisation
of rules and behaviours, the child learns to live in the school community and in society (Sztompka
2003). Socialisation at school is not an isolated process, but it results from the structure of this insti-
tution, the organisation of the material environment, the course of activities undertaken there, and
each initiated social interaction (Nowicka 2015). Isolating a child from school generates many multi-
dimensional changes.
It is odd that in this situation students were urged to do what used to previously be banned by
parents. One of the punishments given to children in the family environment had been a ban on
the use of smartphones, tablets, computers, and limiting their access to the Internet (Bąk 2015).
Before the pandemics, similar practices had also been used at schools.5 In the context of home edu-
cation, these devices became the obligatory equipment of students and teachers. The change was
easier to accept and implement for those teachers, children and parents who had already been
brave explorers of the potential of new learning environments and ways to use it in the school
and out-of-school reality.

A person in the face of a difficult situation

Everyday life usually puts people in familiar, repetitive, simple situations6 in which they can react
efficiently and effectively. However, there are also situations in which an individual, due to their sub-
jective incapacity, cannot satisfy their needs (Modrzewski 2004). In addition to subjective factors,
material factors related to the social space in which a person functions have a significant impact
on generating difficult situations. Subjective and objective factors usually dually create syndromes
that shape typical difficult situations. In sociological literature, the biography of a contemporary
person is sometimes referred to as ‘walking the tightrope’ or ‘ontological risk;’ therefore, it is a chal-
lenge that involves a threat of uncertainty and a specific game of adversity (Bauman 2000; Beck 2002;
Bogunia-Borowska 2009; Hołyst 2014; Sztompka 2003). In an unusual situation – and the coronavirus
pandemic is such a situation – a person must make choices and take risks investing their effort in the
activities they undertake. All these autonomous decisions and investments can be successful but may
also result in failure.
Difficult situations are most often described as a disharmony of subjective conditions and limit-
ation of the subject’s ability to rationally solve tasks and function efficiently in the biographical
cycle (Clayton 2012; Heszen-Niejodek 2000; Hobfoll 2006; Raulkar and Saks 2016; Reykowski 1966;
Selye 1978; Tomczak 2009). According to Tomaszewski (1971), all psychological phenomena
should be considered as elements of the process of regulating relations between a person and
their environment, which consists in organising actions in such a way as to balance or optimise
these relations. This means that the analysis of the difficulties encountered by a person must take
into account both the external conditions and the characteristics of the subject. Tomaszewski
(1971, 1982) distinguishes two types of situations: normal and difficult. The situation is normal
when the requirements assumed in the task, as well as the conditions in the environment and the
competences a person possesses are harmonised. In addition, a normal situation is repetitive; it
involves a consistent proven mode of action. It lasts as long as the structure of operation adopted
by the subject ensures the achievement of results. However, when achieving the result is only poss-
ible if the typical structure of activity is changed, the situation becomes difficult. Other authors also
present a similar approach (Cenin 1993; Makarowski 2008; Strelau 1996). Difficult situations, with all
their diversity, have several basic common features, i.e. they involve factors that interfere with the
normal course of a person’s activity, pose threats to the needs, aspirations and values appreciated
 EDUCATION 3–13 3

by the individual, and induce unpleasant emotional experiences and states of strong mental tension,
which are a reaction to mental overload (Łukaszewski 2015; Ostafińska-Molik and Wysocka 2014).
Difficult situations that can lead to the occurrence of adaptive disorders are diverse. Tomaszewski
(1982) distinguishes: (a) objective difficulties, the causes of which are found in the characteristics of
tasks or in the conditions in which these tasks are performed, and (b) subjective difficulties, whose
sources are inherent in the characteristics of the individual; he assumes that they are closely
related. Qualitatively, however, he divides them into five classes: deprivation, overload, impediment,
conflict and threat. A new situation is a specific difficult situation, whose difficulty results from the lack
of experience in coping with it (Ostafińska-Molik and Wysocka 2014). In this case, there are no devel-
oped response and action patterns that are adequate to meet its requirements (no cognitive or func-
tional patterns). Therefore, this situation is unclear from the point of view of social (e.g. cultural)
expectations or the means and methods of performing tasks, which is associated with a lack of knowl-
edge in this area. From the perspective of the interests of the author of the present paper, the most
useful classification of difficult situations seems to be that by Tyszkowa (1979), which includes three
types of them: (a) difficult life (existential) situations – in which basic values recognised by the individ-
ual are at risk; (b) difficult task situations – where the requirements imposed on an individual exceed
their current capabilities; (c) difficult situations involving social interactions – in which the values and
aspirations of the subject are threatened by actions of other people. It can be assumed that all of
them are experienced by every person in everyday life, but parents who homeschooled their children
during the coronavirus pandemic had much more difficulties in this respect due to the specific situ-
ation that limited the possibilities of constructive coping. Giving respondents new life tasks whose
implementation is difficult (lack of competence and lack of support) generates tensions and
conflicts. They are usually either reduced by outward-directed reactions (aggression) or internally
accumulated (Ostafińska-Molik and Wysocka 2014).
Every difficult situation disorganises the life of an individual, creates the need to cope with it, and
is the beginning of changes taking place in a person and in their environment (Karaszewska and
Silecka-Marek 2016). Disturbance in activity means that the ability to achieve one’s goal becomes
limited or even impossible. The effects of a difficult situation can be various; they are related to
mental or physical aspects of human functioning. At the same time, a difficult situation provokes
questions: Am I able to deal with a given situation? Do I have the right skills to overcome it and
do I have someone near me who is able to help me (among relatives or professionals in a given
field)? A difficult situation can therefore be treated as a continuum, because on the one hand we
are dealing with a certain problem, and on the other hand, with a state of mental stress.
Subjective perception and evaluation of objectively existing threats prompts people to undertake
various adaptive behaviours. In a difficult situation, an individual has to compare their resources with
environmental factors that constitute a challenge. According to Hobfoll (2006), a person’s resources
include ‘objects, conditions, personality traits and energy reserves that are either valued in them-
selves as (directly or indirectly) necessary for survival, or are used to obtain these resources which
enable survival’ (70). Coping consists in choosing a behaviour that is aimed at restoring the state
of security or preventing the loss of security. Most concepts of coping assume that it is a rational
and purposeful behaviour aimed at transforming a threatening situation into a normal and safe
one, in which the requirements for and capabilities of a person are in a relative balance (Niewia-
domska and Chwaszcz 2010). Coping with a difficult situation involves a variety of cognitive activities
and behaviours aimed at resolving the problem situation and alleviating the unpleasant emotional
states that result from experiencing it (Kosińska-Dec and Jelonkiewicz 1995). These are ‘constantly
changing cognitive and behavioural efforts to manage specific external and/or internal demands
that are appraised as taxing or exceeding the resources of the person’ (Lazarus and Folkman 1984,
178). The ability to cope with difficult situations is not given to people at birth, although it
depends on a person’s character, temperament and the type of situation that affects them. Motiv-
ation to act, both internal and external, is also important. In a difficult situation, a person can
strive for a constructive solution by adopting various styles and strategies, can treat it as a task or
4 T. PARCZEWSKA

challenge, but it is also likely that a specific state of affairs will become a stressful situation that will
disorganise a person’s behaviour and destroy their plans (Karaszewska and Silecka-Marek 2016).
The aim of the project was to present and interpret the experiences of parents living in Poland,
related to home education during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, as well as to show the
ways of coping with this difficult situation, taking into account sociodemographic factors (gender
and place of residence).

Method
In carrying out the research, the diagnostic survey method and the survey technique were used
(Stupnicki 2003). The research tool was the Difficult Situation Inventory (Inwentarz Sytuacji
Trudnej, IST) by Makarowski (2008) that provides information on the level of occurrence of situations
described as difficult by the subject. The questionnaire contains 14 statements, to which the subject
must respond by marking their answer on the seven-point Liekert scale – from ‘definitely no’ (1 point)
to ‘definitely yes’ (7 points). People who mark high-scoring answers more often (5, 6, 7) are assumed
to have various problems or dilemmas at the time of completing the questionnaire and are in a
difficult or very difficult situation. People without problems or worries, according to the assumption,
should choose low-scoring answers (1, 2, 3). The overall result is the sum of points obtained by the
respondents from all questions in the Inventory. The minimum number of points is 14, and the
maximum is 98. The range of overall results is as follows: (a) low level: from 14 to 42 points; (b)
high and very high level: from 43 to 98 points. A survey with questions about sociodemographic
factors was added to the questionnaire. The second tool used in the study was the author’s question-
naire survey addressed to parents raising preschool- and school-aged children. The questionnaire
contains 30 questions that examine parents’ opinions about home education during the coronavirus
pandemic. In addition to closed questions with categorical answers, the questionnaire also contains
open questions that require a descriptive answer, which the respondent must formulate themselves.
The obtained results were subjected to statistical analysis. The values of the analysed measurable
parameters were presented using the mean value, median, standard deviation, while those of the
non-measurable parameters – using number and percentage. For qualitative features, the chi-
square test was used to detect the existence of relationships between the analysed variables. The
normality of the distribution of variables in the examined groups was studied with the Shapiro–
Wilk normality test, which is a standard test used to check the normality of data. It is very powerful
and is considered the best test to check the normality of the distribution of a random variable (Razali
and Yap 2011). As the distribution of variables deviated from normal, the Mann–Whitney U test was
used to test the differences between two groups, and the Kruskal–Wallis test was used to test the
differences between three groups. A level of significance of p < 0.05 indicating the existence of stat-
istically significant differences or dependencies was adopted. The obtained quantitative data were
analysed using Statistica 9.1 computer software (StatSoft, Poland). The content analysis method
(Krzystek 2018; Miles and Huberman 1994; Strauss and Corbin 1998) was used in the analysis of
data collected using open questions by systematising and ordering respondents’ statements. The-
matic analysis was carried out in the ATLAS.ti program. After developing a list of the most
common themes, an attempt was made to interpret their common meaning.

Study sample
The study involved 278 parents (31.65% of whom were men and 68.35% women) who raise pre-
school- and school-aged children and live in the countryside (29.50%), in a small town (34.17%)
and a large city (36.33%), in the Lublin, Podlaskie, Masovian and Greater Poland voivodeships. The
age of the respondents ranged from less than 30 (2.88%) to over 40 (28.06%). 16.54% respondents
belonged to the 30–35 age group. The largest group – 52.52% – were respondents aged 36–40.
According to the statements of the studied mothers, 71.22% have higher education, 26.98% –
 EDUCATION 3–13 5

secondary education and 1.80% – vocational education. Among fathers, 55.04% have higher edu-
cation, 35.97% have secondary education, and 8.99% have vocational education. Nearly 60%
(59.35%) of the respondents described the material conditions of their family as good, 38.13% as
very good, while 2.52% considered them to be bad.

Results

A. Specificity of the ‘home school’

Declarations of parents – collected using the author’s questionnaire – who homeschooled their chil-
dren during the coronavirus pandemic show that 67.63% of children had permanent access to a com-
puter and the Internet, 18.35% only occasionally, and 14.02% did not have such access. For 42.45% of
children, it took up to 3 h during the day to do homework given by the teacher, 4–6 h for 36.69% of
children, and 7 h or more for 20.86% of children. According to the respondents, 68.35% of students
were taught remotely using e-mail, and 31.65% through on-line teacher-led classes. Children spent
the most time during the day learning (59.35%), followed by playing (25.90%), sport (10.79%) and
work (3.96%). Nearly 40% of parents only performed a supervisory function when children did their
homework; other parents helped their children by explaining more difficult issues to them, including
15.11% who gave the child the ready answer in the case of difficulties in doing homework. 86.33%
respondents declared their children had a designated learning space, and 13.67% of those surveyed
did not provide such space. In home education, nearly 70% of parents scheduled breaks between
classes, while the rest did it ‘sometimes’ or rather did not do it at all. It is worrying that nearly 20%
of parents did not take care to ensure that their child did physical activity during the day. In addition,
35.61% of parents admitted that while helping their children with homework, they felt frustrated and
used verbal violence (a raised tone of voice, prohibitions and punishments). The respondents’ state-
ments often included the topic of helplessness related to the lack of ways or abilities to effectively
motivate the child to learn.7 Attempts by parents to motivate children generally had the nature of
external motivators (sweets, watching favourite films and cartoons, playing video games on a
console, playing with a friend, games, other small pleasures). Regardless of various activities related
to learning and teaching, both on the part of the school and the family, over 70% of respondents
said that the coronavirus situation would have a negative impact on their children’s education.
Based on the collected research material, categories were generated that, in the parents’ opinion,
are related to the perception of home teaching as a difficult situation. Most parents found the cause
of the difficult situation mainly in the excess of duties, subsequently in problems related to the lack of
appropriate equipment for remote classes and the inability to install it. Over half of the respondents
emphasised the lack of pedagogical competence (in relation to themselves), as well as excessive
requirements that were imposed by teachers and difficult to meet. It is revealing, and at the same
time intriguing, that only few parents look at education more broadly, with the child’s comprehensive
development in perspective. In their opinion, learning is not only tasks solved on worksheets, but also
playing sports, reading for entertainment and in order to gain knowledge, taking the dog for a walk,
washing, helping in the family business, talking with neighbours, visiting relatives, taking a walk in
nature, and even daydreaming.
The added value of home education is that parents rediscovered their children and children redis-
covered their parents. Despite many difficulties, 68.35% of respondents said that for safety reasons,
students should not return to school by the end of the school year.

B. Home education during the pandemic as a difficult situation

The analysis of data on the occurrence of difficult situations in the case of parents providing home
education during the coronavirus pandemic, collected using the Difficult Situation Inventory (IST) makes
6 T. PARCZEWSKA

it possible to conclude that there were no statistically significant differences in the results due to the
gender and place of residence of the respondents (Table 1). The average score on the IST scale of the
parents surveyed was 45.01 for women and 45.28 for men. Taking into account the place of residence,
the average result in a large city was 45.14, in a small town – 45.44, and in the countryside – 44.65.
Compared to the norms calculated by Makarowski (2008) on a sample of 428 persons (M = 30.31;
SD = 11.32), the results presented in Table 1 are higher (M = 45.10; SD = 13.48), which may mean that
respondents who played the role of teachers of their children experienced the difficult nature of the
situation more severely. Considering the levels of IST results determined in the current research, it
should be stated that 51.08% of parents surveyed have a low level of these results (these are
persons who did not perceive this situation as difficult), while 48.92% of respondents are character-
ised by high and very high IST results (these are persons who perceived their situation as difficult or
very difficult) (Table 2). The relationships between the IST level, gender and place of residence are not
statistically significant (p = 0.431; p = 0.685). This means that the level of experiencing difficult situ-
ations is not related to the gender and place of residence of the respondents.
In the respondents’ answers to the question from the author’s questionnaire: ‘Do you perceive
educating your child at home during the pandemic as a difficult situation?’, there was a statistically
significant relationship between gender (p < 0.001) as well as place of residence (p < 0.001) and the
perceived difficult situation (Table 3). This means that in the group of women the distribution of
answers was different than in the group of men. In the group of men there were more respondents
(46.59%) who gave negative answers (‘definitely not’ and ‘no’) than in the group of women (14.74%),
while in the group of women there were more answers ‘rather not’, ‘difficult to say’, ‘rather yes’
(53.16%) and more positive answers: ‘yes’, ‘definitely yes’ (32.11%). In the case of place of residence –
large city, small town, the countryside – the distribution of answers was also varied. In a large city,
more respondents (41.58%) chose such answers as ‘definitely not’ and ‘no’ than in a small city
(11.58%) or in the countryside (19.51%). However, in a small town and in the countryside there
were more positive answers (‘yes’, ‘definitely yes’).
There was no statistically significant difference between men and women (p = 0.131) in the
responses to the question: ‘Do you perceive educating your child at home during the pandemic as
a difficult situation?’ (p = 0.001) (Table 4). Respondents from a large city gave more negative
answers (the mean in a large city is M = 3.89) than respondents from a small town (M = 4.94) and
the countryside (M = 4.68). However, there were no differences between a small town and the coun-
tryside (these two groups similarly assessed the difficulty of educating the child at home during the
pandemic).
Based on the analysis of parents’ responses to the question: ‘Do you feel that duties of home edu-
cation are beyond your capabilities?’, there was a statistically significant relationship between gender
(p = 0.001) or place of residence (p = 0.018) and coping with the responsibilities related to home teach-
ing (Table 5). The data show that in the group of men more respondents (40.91%) gave negative answers
(‘definitely not’ and ‘no’) than in the group of women (20.00%), while in the group of women there were
more answers ‘rather not’, ‘difficult to say’, ‘rather yes’ (45.79%) and more positive answers: ‘yes’,
‘definitely yes’ (34.21%). In the case of place of residence – large city, small town, the countryside –
the distribution of answers was also varied. In a large city, more respondents (37.62%) answered

Table 1. Differences in Difficult Situation Inventory (IST) results broken down by gender and place of residence.
Difficult Situation Inventory results
Sociodemographic factors M Me SD Statistical analysis
Gender Women 45.01 44 13.07 Z = 0.135
Men 45.28 42 14.39 p = 0.892
Place of residence Large city 45.14 42 13.82 H(2.278) = 0.559
Small town 45.44 45 13.34 p = 0.756
The countryside 44.65 40 13.36
Total 45.10 42 13.48 –
 EDUCATION 3–13 7

Table 2. Difficult Situation Inventory (IST) result level and gender / place of residence.
Difficult Situation Inventory result level Chi2
Sociodemographic factors Low (14–42 points) High/very high (43–98 points) p
Gender Women N 94 96 Chi2 = 0.619
% 49.47% 50.53% df = 1
Men N 48 40 p = 0.431
% 54.55% 45.45%
Place of residence Large city N 51 50 Chi2 = 0.756
% 50.50% 49.50% df = 3
Small town N 46 49 p = 0.685
% 48.42% 51.58%
The countryside N 45 37
% 54.88% 45.12%
Total N 142 136 –
% 51.08% 48.92%

‘definitely not’ and ‘no’ than in a small city (18.95%) or in the countryside (21.95%). However, in a small
town and in the countryside there were more positive answers (‘yes’, ‘definitely yes’).
In terms of coping with the responsibilities of home teaching, there was a statistically significant
difference between women and men (p = 0.010), but no such difference was observed for the place of
residence (p = 0.166) (Table 6). The group of women had more positive responses (mean is M = 4.41)
than the group of men (mean is 3.77).

c. Parents and home education – coping styles

Home education provided by parents during the coronavirus pandemic can be studied within the
framework of the interactive model of coping with difficult situations proposed by Endler and Parker
(1994, 2000), in which the researchers distinguish three styles of behaviour: (1) task-oriented style, (2)
emotion-oriented style, and (3) avoidance-oriented style. Data collected using the author’s survey
questionnaire prove that 59.71% of parents presented a task-oriented style, i.e. making efforts (per-
forming tasks) to solve the problem, which is achieved by its cognitive transformation and an attempt
to change the situation assessed as difficult. Respondents are characterised by focusing on difficulties
and searching for a way to solve them, optimism, a positive attitude to the child’s education at home,
faith in the effectiveness of actions taken and the belief that at least some of the problems and
requirements of the difficult situation are worth the effort, dedication and commitment. Difficult

Table 3. The relationship between the perception of educating the child at home during the pandemic as a difficult situation and
gender / place of residence.
Do you perceive educating your child at home during the pandemic as a
difficult situation?
Definitely not / Rather not / difficult to say / Yes / definitely Chi2
Sociodemographic factors no rather yes yes p
Gender Women N 28 101 61 Chi2 =
% 14.74% 53.16% 32.11% 48.723
Men N 41 12 35 df = 2
% 46.59% 13.64% 39.77% p < 0.001
Place of Large city N 42 39 20 Chi2 =
residence % 41.58% 38.61% 19.80% 30.401
Small town N 11 39 45 df = 4
% 11.58% 41.05% 47.37% p < 0.001
The N 16 35 31
countryside % 19.51% 42.68% 37.80%
Total N 69 113 96 –
% 24.82 40.65 34.53
8 T. PARCZEWSKA

Table 4. Perceiving child’s home education during the pandemic as a difficult situation – a comparison of the ‘intensity’ of
responses.
Do you perceive educating your child
at home during the pandemic as a
difficult situation?
Sociodemographic factors M Me SD Statistical analysis
Gender Women 4.64 5 1.69 Z = 1.511
Men 4.14 5 2.41 p = 0.131
Place of residence Large city 3.89 5 2.07 H(2.278) = 15.374
Small town 4.94 5 1.77 p = 0.001
The countryside 4.68 5 1.85 D < M (p = 0.001)
D < W (p = 0.020)
M – mean, Me – median, SD – standard deviation, Z – Mann-Whitney U test, H – Kruskal-Wallis test, p – statistical significance.

Table 5. The relationship between ‘coping’ in a difficult situation and gender / place of residence.
Do you feel that duties of home education are beyond your capabilities?
Definitely not / Rather not / difficult to say / Yes / definitely Chi2
Sociodemographic factors no rather yes yes p
Gender Women N 38 87 65 Chi2 =
% 20.00% 45.79% 34.21% 14.182
Men N 36 26 26 df = 2
% 40.91% 29.55% 29.55% p = 0.001
Place of Large city N 38 37 26 Chi2 =
residence % 37.62% 36.63% 25.74% 11.933
Small town N 18 45 32 df = 4
% 18.95% 47.37% 33.68% p = 0.018
The N 18 31 33
countryside % 21.95% 37.80% 40.24%
Total N 74 113 91 –
% 26.62 40.65 32.73

situations are treated by the respondents as challenges. Planning solutions and undertaking tasks
leads to an increase in the sense of control over the situation, reducing the occurrence of negative
emotions. It is attested to by fragments of their statements:
I can see the benefits of this situation, I get full insight into what my child is learning, what goes well and what goes
badly. I get time to help children acquire life skills such as hanging laundry or arranging dishes in the dishwasher. I
make sure that we take breaks for rest and have a meal together, when we can talk, listen to others … Together, we
plan every day and talk about what was good and what needs to be improved. It’s not always perfect, but we try, we
have recovery plans (woman, large city);

Children are unlikely to remember what task they were doing in mathematics or history, but they certainly will not
forget the atmosphere at home in this unusual situation: playing together, joking, quarrels and conversations that
are never finished. It’s a good time to think, catch your breath, think about what’s most important in life. I don’t
know many things, but we can look for solutions together. Planning is the first step to success, not only on the
farm, but also in life (…) (man, the countryside).

Table 6. Coping with home teaching duties – comparison of the ‘intensity’ of responses.
Do you feel that duties of home
education are beyond your
capabilities?
Sociodemographic factors M Me SD Statistical analysis
Gender Women 4.41 5 1.77 Z = 2.593
Men 3.77 3 2.10 p = 0.010
Place of residence Large city 3.96 4 1.93 H(2.278) = 3.592
Small town 4.26 4 1.76 p = 0.166
The countryside 4.45 5 2.01
 EDUCATION 3–13 9

Emotion-oriented style – focusing attention on oneself and one’s negative emotional experiences
(fear, anger, guilt) – was presented by 29.50% of respondents. This is accompanied by apparent reac-
tions (wishful thinking and realisation of tasks in the imagination), which have the function of redu-
cing emotional tension that accompanies a difficult situation, but which actually cause its increase
and thus may result in a tendency to vent it through aggressive behaviour or by provoking
conflict situations. Respondents were trying to change the reality created by the pandemic, but
these are apparent actions. From the very beginning, they doubted their effectiveness; they were
changeable. They had good intentions, but they lacked patience, they quickly gave up on started
tasks, changed plans. In their statements, they often said such things as ‘hard to say’, ‘rather not’,
‘rather yes’. Sample statements:
As a parent, you want to do everything to protect your child, but you can’t really do much. Teachers certainly have
their problems and reasons, and my wife and I can’t cope with three children. Home is not a school. At home, we’re still
parents, not teachers. I don’t see any chance for any success without online teaching. What is all that for? Papers,
videos, you don’t know what it’s all about. I’m trying to sort it out. The child is supposed to play the flute and the
flute was left at school. I know what learning at home should look like, I used to work in Germany, I saw it. But
here, in such conditions, it’s unthinkable. Such paradoxes, a waste of effort; it makes me a bundle of nerves (…)
(man, small town);

Children have a schedule for each day of the week. Does it help? It is hard to say. We try to organise the day, but life is
unpredictable. What was important yesterday does not matter today, there are other things to do. Sometimes some-
thing goes according to this plan, and other times the whole day is filled with doing homework. I think people are not
coping well when they are not sure of the future, even in such a simple area as the daily schedule. This situation annoys
me, especially the teachers who think that the more homework they set, the better. I know that I am responsible for the
future of my children and I am worried because I am not a good teacher, I have no knowledge, but I feel guilty and I
am aware that I do not always do the right thing (woman, the countryside).

The proportion of parents with an avoidance-oriented style – who prevent direct confrontation with
the problem – was 10.79%. This percentage of respondents is characterised by avoiding thinking
about and experiencing difficult situations. Among them, there are respondents who engaged in sub-
stitute activities that diverted their attention from the problem (e.g. watching TV, playing sports) or
who sought social contacts, which were a form of escape, by turning to other people and seeking
emotional support (e.g. long Skype conversations). Respondents, usually – as they claim – were over-
worked and did not have much time for their children. They were convinced that ‘the world [would]
not collapse’, ‘it [would] work out somehow’, because it had always ‘worked out somehow’. They were
not emotionally involved in the situation, they did not give up their habits and interests for activities
related to home education. Analysing the situation of parents who performed the role of their child’s
teachers, it can be concluded that coping strategies available for the last group boil down mainly to a
style, consolidated by life experiences, focused on avoiding and underestimating difficult situations.

Discussion and conclusions

The coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has brought new challenges to all social groups around the
world, including families in Poland. The restrictions announced by the authorities turned out to be
not only a medical, but also a psychological revolution. It is a mentally difficult situation – being
jolted out of everyday routine and ways of functioning of adults and children. Research has shown
that when parents have to fill children’s time in a closed space of the home, without contact with
peers and teachers, it generates a lot of surprises, tensions and conflicts, enforces a different organis-
ation of daily activities and often makes everyday life difficult. Parents, ‘thrown’ into the role of being a
teacher, despite their efforts were often unable to cope with tasks that are beyond their competences,
or with stress that accompanied them and their children. The uncertainty of tomorrow and pressure
meant that parents need to quickly search and equally quickly absorb huge amounts of messages
transmitted through verbal and non-verbal information channels and to solve various problems on
an ongoing basis. They described the circumstances in which they found themselves as a difficult
and very difficult situation. Analysis of data on the perception of various difficult situations by
10 T. PARCZEWSKA

parents homeschooling their children during the coronavirus pandemic, collected using Difficult Situ-
ation Inventory (IST), shows that 48.92% of respondents are people who perceived their situation as
difficult and very difficult. At the same time, there were no statistically significant differences in the
results due to gender and place of residence of the respondents. However, the answer to the question
from the author’s questionnaire about teaching a child at home shows that for 34.55% of respondents
this was a difficult situation. In addition, the data show significant differences in results based on the
place of residence. This means that a larger percentage of parents living in the countryside and in a
small town perceive this situation as difficult than those living in a large city. 40.65% of respondents
could not unambiguously assess their situation. 32.73% of parents said that home education was
beyond their capabilities. A statistically significant relationship was observed between gender as
well as place of residence and coping with the duties related to educating a child at home. Some
respondents, permeated with anxiety and uncertainty, experienced frustration accompanied by nega-
tive emotions: anger, annoyance, irritation, fear and helplessness. Many parents’ statements included
such words as discouragement, feeling overwhelmed, confusion, loneliness, disorganisation. For a sig-
nificant proportion of respondents, the time of pandemic did not only signify a sense of discomfort and
dramatic situations people experienced, but also a time of hope, invigoration, initiatives, critical think-
ing, joint problem solving, creativity, seeing the needs of others and helping each other.
The results of the study showed a clear maladjustment of the educational environment – both on
the part of home and the school – to the conditions caused by the pandemic. In Poland, there are
such environments and such families in which the number of computers or telephones that make
it possible to participate in social life is insufficient from the point of view of education in general,
and in these unusual conditions in particular. The opinions of the surveyed parents show that only
1/3 of students participated in on-line classes that were considered by respondents to be
effective. Respondents were worried about the educational future of their children and their fate.
The parents’ effort determined by the changing reality and undertaken to embrace it, as well as
the need to constantly adapt, made their psychophysical capacity insufficient for coping with it. In
the face of the experience of home education during the pandemic, ‘genuinely creative adaptation
seems to represent the only possibility that man can keep abreast of the kaleidoscopic change in his
world’ (Rogers 1961, 348). Therefore, an extremely important task for the future is not only material
and intellectual, but also emotional, social and cultural preparation of the society to face future
potential events.
The author of the text is aware that not all the circumstances that make the situation of educating
a child at home during a pandemic difficult have been taken into account. Some of them did not
appear in the respondents’ statements, which does not mean that their role is marginal. The text
only mentions these situations and problems described by the interlocutors which in their opinion
were significant enough to be disclosed. This does not mean, however, that everything related to
the difficult situation of educating children at home during the coronavirus pandemic has been dis-
covered. The research results can be a kind of challenge for those responsible for the tomorrow’s edu-
cation, as they open new directions of activity and new paths of thinking. In order to take advantage
of educational opportunities offered by technology, especially in times of crisis, it is necessary to
supply teachers and students with the equipment and the ability to acquire skills. Support is also
needed by parents, who play an extremely important role in the educational process, and who do
not always have the competences to accompany their children in acquiring knowledge.

Notes
1. The terms ‘home education’, ‘homeschooling’ and ‘home-based education’ used in this article refer only to edu-
cating children at home in the situation of the coronavirus pandemic and are not the same as typical ‘home edu-
cation’ implemented in Poland since 1991, understood as an alternative to education in preschool and at school
(Art.37 of the Act of 14 December 2016 - Education Law, Journal of Laws of 2020, item 910): http://isap.sejm.gov.
pl/isap.nsf/download.xsp/WDU20170000059/U/D20170059Lj.pdf (accessed 30.07.2020).
 EDUCATION 3–13 11

2. In the Polish education system, compulsory education is divided into: (a) compulsory one-year preparation for
school for 6-year-old children; (b) compulsory schooling, which starts with the beginning of the school year in
the calendar year in which the child reaches the age of 7, and continues until the end of the 8-year primary
school, but no longer than until the age of 18 (see: Organisation and structure of the education system:
https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/national-policies/eurydice/content/organisation-education-system-and-its- structure-
56_pl (accessed: 30.07.2020).
3. The Regulation of the Minister of National Education of 20 March 2020 on specific solutions during the temporary
limitation in the functioning of units of the education system in relation to preventing, counteracting and com-
bating COVID-19: http://isap.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20200000493 (accessed: 30.03.2020).
4. According to data from the Ministry of National Education, in the current school year (2019/2020) about 4.6
million students receive education at school, 3 million of whom are primary school students, and 1.6 million
are secondary school students: https://www.zadluzenia.com/ilu-jest-uczniow-w-polsce/ accessed: 30.03.2020).
5. According to the report by Sieć Edukacji Cyfrowej Komet@ from 2018, 59% of Polish schools more or less strictly
prohibited the use of smartphones and tablets.
6. The concept of the situation is of interest not only to psychologists (Reykowski 1966; Tomaszewski 1984; Tysz-
kowa 1986), but also to philosophers and sociologists. In philosophy, it is present in these directions that focus
on the problems of human existence, fate and activities, such as phenomenology and existentialism (Husserl, Hei-
degger, Hartman, Sartre). In sociological works, the concept of situation is mainly analysed in the context of
human activity (Parsons 1972; Znaniecki 1973).
7. Terminology used in the literature includes internal and external motivation (Gottfried 1990; Carlton and Winsler
1998), results-oriented and mastery-oriented goals (Elliott and Dweck 1988), and achievements (Berndt and Miller
1990). Internal and external motivations describe the way an individual engages in a task or activity. Internal
motivation is the motivation to take up activity for itself; external motivation is the motivation to take action
as a means to an end. Goal orientation explains achievement behaviour and sheds light on an individual’s under-
standing, learning, and task performance. The purpose of activities in external motivation is reward or avoidance
of punishment, while in internal motivation - focus on learning, developing new skills or an attempt to understand
the problem (Elliott and Dweck 1988).

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

ORCID
Teresa Parczewska http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7651-5519

References
Bąk, A. 2015. “Jak małe dzieci korzystają z urządzeń mobilnych? Raport na podstawie danych zebranych od rodziców.”
Dziecko krzywdzone. Teoria, badania, praktyka 14 (3): 55–82.
Bauman, Z. 2000. Globalizacja. Warszawa: Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy.
Beck, U. 2002. Społeczeństwo ryzyka w drodze do innej nowoczesności. Warszawa: Scholar.
Berger, P., and T. Luckmann. 1983. Społeczne tworzenie rzeczywistości. Warszawa: Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy.
Berndt, T. J., and K. E. Miller. 1990. “Expectancies, Values, and Achievement in Junior High School.” Journal of
Environmental Psychology 82: 319–326. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.82.2.319.
Bogunia-Borowska, M. 2009. Barwy codzienności. Analiza socjologiczna. Warszawa: Scholar.
Bruner, J. 2010. Kultura edukacji. Krakow: Towarzystwo Autorów i Wydawców Prac Naukowych Universitas.
Carlton, M. P., and A. Winsler. 1998. “Fostering Intrinsic Motivation in Early Childhood Classrooms.” Early Childhood
Education Journal 25 (3): 159–166. doi:10.1023/A:1025601110383.
Cenin, M. 1993. “Człowiek w sytuacjach trudnych.” In Trening psychologiczny. Analiza efektywności w sytuacjach zadanio-
wych, edited by M. Cenin, 9–25. Wroclaw: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego.
Clayton, M. 2012. Zarządzanie stresem, czyli, jak sobie radzić w trudnych sytuacjach. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Edgard.
Elliott, E. S., and C. S. Dweck. 1988. “Goals: AN Approach to Motivation and Achievement.” Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology 54 (1): 5–12. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.54.1.5.
Endler, N. S., and J. D. A. Parker. 1994. “Assessment of Multidimensional Coping: Task, Emotion, and Avoidance Strategies.”
Psychological Assessment 6: 50–60. doi:10.1037/1040-3590.6.1.50.
Endler, N. S., and J. D. A. Parker. 2000. Coping with Health, Injuries and Problems (CHIP): Manual. Toronto: Multi-Health
Systems.
12 T. PARCZEWSKA

Gottfried, A. E. 1990. “Academic Intrinsic Motivation in Young Elementary School Children.” Journal of Educational
Psychology 82: 525–538. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.82.3.525.
Gouëdard, P., B. Pont, and R. Viennet. 2020. “Education Responses to COVID-19: Implementing a Way Forward.” OECD
Education Working Papers 224. doi:10.1787/8e95f977-en.
Heszen-Niejodek, I. 2000. “Stres i radzenie sobie – główne kontrowersje.” In Człowiek w sytuacji stresu, edited by I. Heszen-
Niejodek and Z. Ratajczak, 12–43. Katowice: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego.
Hobfoll, S. E. 2006. Stres, kultura i społeczeństwo. Gdansk: GWP.
Hołyst, B. 2014. Zagrożenia ładu społecznego. Vol. 1 & 2. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.
Karaszewska, H., and E. Silecka-Marek. 2016. Sytuacje trudne w perspektywie jednostkowej i społecznej. Poznan:
Wydawnictwo Naukowe UAM.
Kosińska-Dec, K., and I. Jelonkiewicz. 1995. “Sposoby radzenia sobie przez rodziców z zaburzeniami emocjonalnymi i
chorobą somatyczną dziecka.” Psychologia Wychowawcza 4: 337–349.
Krzystek, M. 2018. Analiza tematyczna w badaniach jakościowych. Krakow: Fundacja Rozwoju Badań Społecznych.
Lazarus, R. S., and S. Folkman. 1984. Stress, Appraisal and Coping. New York: Springer Publishing Company.
Łukaszewski, W. 2015. Wielkie i te nieco mniejsze pytania psychologii. Sopot: Smak Słowa.
Makarowski, R. 2008. Granice ryzyka. Paradygmat psychologiczny. Krakow: Oficyna Wydawnicza Impuls.
Miles, M. B., and A. M. Huberman. 1994. Qualitative Data Analysis. London: Sage.
Modrzewski, J. 2004. Socjalizacja i uczestnictwo społeczne. Studium socjopedagogiczne. Poznan: Wydawnictwo Naukowe
UAM.
Niewiadomska, I., and J. Chwaszcz. 2010. Jak skutecznie zapobiegać karierze przestępczej?. Lublin: Wydawnictwo Tekst.
Nowicka, M. 2015. “Dziecko w procesie socjalizacji szkolnej – ku integracji czy dysonansowi?” In (Anty)edukacja wczesnosz-
kolna, edited by D. Klus-Stańska, 178–203. Krakow: Impuls.
Ostafińska-Molik, B., and E. Wysocka. 2014. “Radzenie sobie w sytuacjach trudnych jako kategoria różnicująca funkcjono-
wanie młodzieży prawidłowo i wadliwie przystosowanej społecznie – analiza teoretyczna.” In Innowacje resocjaliza-
cyjne, edited by W. Ambrozik and A. Dąbrowska, 113–131. Warszawa: Pedagogium Wyższa Szkoła Nauk Społecznych.
Parsons, T. 1972. Szkice z teorii socjologicznej. Warszawa: PWN.
Pokropek, A. 2013. Efekt rówieśników w nauczaniu szkolnym. Warszawa: Instytut Badań Edukacyjnych.
Raulkar, K. P., and N. S. Saks. 2016. “Exercise and Sleep Patterns of Pre-Clerkship Medical Students and Self-Reported
Stress Levels.” Medical Science Educator 26 (3): 337–341. doi:10.1007/s40670-016-0278-z.
Razali, N. M., and B. W. Yap. 2011. “Power Comparisons of Shapiro-Wilk, Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Lilliefors and Anderson-
Darling Tests.” Journal of Statistical Modeling and Analytics 2 (1): 21–33. doi:10.1080/00949655.2010.520163.
Reykowski, J. 1966. Funkcjonowanie osobowości w warunkach stresu psychologicznego. Warszawa: PWN.
Rogers, C. R. 1961. On Becoming a Person. Poznan: Houghton Mifflin.
Schaffer, H. R. 2005. Psychologia dziecka. Warszawa: PWN.
Selye, H. 1978. Stres okiełznany. Warszawa: PIW.
Strauss, A., and J. Corbin. 1998. Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory.
2nd ed. London: Sage Publications.
Strelau, J. 1996. “Temperament a stres. Temperament jako czynnik moderujący stresory, stan i skutki stresu oraz radzenie
sobie ze stresem.” In Człowiek w sytuacji stresu. Problemy teoretyczne i metodologiczne, edited by I. Heszen-Niejodek
and Z. Ratajczak, 88–132. Katowice: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego.
Stupnicki, R. 2003. Analiza i prezentacja danych ankietowych. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Akademii Wychowania
Fizycznego.
Sztejnberg, A. 2006. Komunikacyjne środowisko nauczania i uczenia się. Wroclaw: Wydawnictwo Astrum.
Sztompka, P. 2003. Socjologia. Analiza społeczeństwa. Krakow: Znak.
Tomaszewski, T. 1971. Wstęp do psychologii. Warszawa: PWN.
Tomaszewski, T. 1982. “Człowiek i otoczenie.” In Psychologia, edited by T. Tomaszewski, 13–36. Warszawa: PWN.
Tomaszewski, T. 1984. Główne idee współczesnej psychologii. Warszawa: Wiedza Powszechna.
Tomczak, K. 2009. “Style radzenia sobie w sytuacji stresowej, przekonanie o własnej skuteczności, nadzieja na sukces u
studentów rozpoczynających i kończących studia.” Psychoterapia 2 (149): 67–79.
Tyszkowa, M. 1979. “Funkcjonowanie dzieci w sytuacjach trudnych.” Oświata i Wychowanie 6: 210–217.
Tyszkowa, M. 1986. Zachowanie się dzieci szkolnych w sytuacjach trudnych. Warszawa: PWN.
Wygotski, L. S. 2000. Wybrane prace psychologiczne II: dzieciństwo i dorastanie. Poznan: Wydawnictwo Zysk i S-ka.
Wygotski, L. S. 2006. Narzędzie i znak w rozwoju dziecka. Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN.
Znaniecki, F. 1973. Socjologia wychowania. Vol. 2. PWN.