PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT ON THE MODULAR

DISTANCE LEARNING IN CHALLENGED

AREA: A CASE STUDY

PSYCHOLOGY AND EDUCATION: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL

Volume: 14
Pages: 1089-1097
Document ID: 2023PEMJ1319
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10068611
Manuscript Accepted: 2023-3-11
Psych Educ,2023 , 14: 1089-01097, Document ID:2023 PEMJ1319, doi:10.5281/zenodo.10068611, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article

Parental Involvement on the Modular Distance Learning in

Challenged Area: A Case Study
Harlyn L. Palmes*, Harry R. Palmes
For affiliations and correspondence, see the last page.
Abstract
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.

Keywords: parental involvement, modular learning, challenge areas

Introduction of kids, instructors, and families (Wajdi, 2020).

As COVID-19 expanded, nations devised emergency
strategies to halt and restrict the virus's spread,
including the shutdown of schools on a general,
regional, or targeted basis (UNESCO, 2020). For in-
person learning activities, certain colleges and
institutions were temporarily closed (Wajdi, 2020).
The Philippines is currently in the midst of
implementing the new normal type of education, and
its success depends on educators' ongoing innovations
and the active participation of other stakeholders. The
Department of Education implemented Modular
Distance Learning to maintain continuity in education
and ensure that every school continues to fulfill its
mission and vision, which is to offer high-quality
instruction to every Filipino learner. Distance learning
is a method of delivering education in which the
teacher and the students interact while they are
physically separated during instruction. Three
variations of this modality exist: TV/radio-based
instruction, online distance learning, and modular
distance learning (Quinones, 2020).
During the pandemic, it is important to take into
account the psychological effects of homeschooling
and social isolation on the mental health and wellness
Significant academic losses among children may have
been impacted by learning interruptions at school,
especially for those who were already at a
disadvantage (Reimers & Schleicher, 2020).
To counteract these learning losses, certain educational
strategies were put in place, and various online
learning platforms and educational resources were
made available to guarantee the continuity of teaching
and learning. As a result, throughout the epidemic, the
need for digital technology increased considerably,
despite the difficulties this increased need presented
for instructors, families, and children to maintain home
learning. A sudden transformation was difficult
because most schools and teachers were not
accustomed to online instruction (Carvalho, Azevedo,
Cruz, & Fonseca, 2020). Even with the availability of
technology tools, effective use of digital devices in the
classroom requires both qualified teachers and school
policies (UNESCO, 2020). Other issues included
students' limited access to technology and the internet,
alternative methods of providing academic activity
supplies like extra work and excessive homework, and
fewer opportunities for teachers to provide more in-
depth explanations when necessary (Carvalho,
Azevedo, Cruz &Fonseca, 2020). Therefore, online
learning increased stress levels for both students and
family (Wajdi, 2020).

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Psych Educ,2023 , 14: 1089-01097, Document ID:2023 PEMJ1319, doi:10.5281/zenodo.10068611, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article
Companies and organizations had to implement remote
work when schools were closed, which forced families
into new routines and social contact patterns. The
work-family balance, parental support, and school-
family cooperation have all been profoundly impacted
by this new circumstance. This was necessary since it
imposed changes on the entire Portuguese community
of parents, students, and schools. It also changed
parents' involvement in their children's education and
learning at this time in a way that had never been seen
before (Markowska-Manista & Zakrzewska-Ol, 2020).
Parents collaborate with instructors in the classroom
since education is no longer confined to the school
setting. Parents are essential home facilitators. Their
main responsibility in modular learning is to engage
with the student and mentor them (FlipScience, 2020).
Parents and guardians have a variety of responsibilities
in modular learning, including Module-ator, Bundy-
clock, and Home Innovator, according to the
Department of Education (DepEd). Depending on the
arrangement between the parents and the school, the
Module-ators are responsible for collecting the printed
Self-Learning Modules (SLMs) from and delivering
them to the barangay halls or schools at the start and
end of each week. They are required to verify their
child's timetable or weekly plan as a Bundy-clock.
Because there are so many courses or tasks to do, they
must ensure that everything is done correctly to
prevent cramming or submission delays, which could
have an impact on the child's performance. Finally, in
order to help their child focus more on learning, home
innovators need to give their kids a conducive learning
environment. It must be a quiet, distraction-free area of
the home that is well-ventilated and bright
(FlipScience, 2020).
Parents' participation in these pandemic times is
crucial, there is no doubt about it. Numerous studies
demonstrated, even in the years before the pandemic,
important parental participation is important to
adolescents' academic success. Parents' participation in
homework assignments, according to researchers Xu,
Benson, Mudrey-Camino and Steineret (2010), can be
a useful tool for keeping parents well-informed about
their children's abilities and shortcomings in a variety
of academic subjects, particularly reading. In terms of
learning possibilities, the gap had already widened
even before the pandemic, but it had widened more
significantly in challenge areas.
According to Mohamed and Said (2012), as urban
areas are commonly linked to having more access to
education, access to education is becoming an
Palmes & Palmes
important factor in explaining income differences
between rural and urban areas. Rural areas continued
to experience larger educational inequality than urban
areas. Furthermore, Cruces, Garca, and Gasparini
(2011) shown that nations with significant wealth
disparity also have high levels of educational
inequality. In the Philippines, where there is obvious
income inequality, there is also obvious education
inequality (Monsod and Monsod 2003; Mesa 2007).
Monitoring education disparity in the Philippines is
important because it can lead to welfare losses for
society and because education is a key component in
reducing poverty.
Recognizing the importance of parental engagement
while also taking into account 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. The
COVID-19 epidemic, according to Lu (Lu, 2020), may
pave the way for educational advancements including
supporting and promoting parental involvement.
Hence, understanding parents’ perspectives in terms of
their involvement in their students learning during
these unprecedented times will be the focus of the
study.
Research Objectives
This study aimed to investigate the parental
involvement on the modular distance modality in
challenged areas in the Municipality of Calinog, Iloilo,
Philippines.
Methodology
This study employed the multiple case study
methodological perspective. According to Yin (2003),
when the researcher chooses to do a multiple case
study, he is able to analyze the data within each
situation and also across different situations, unlike
when a single case study is chosen.
Locale of the Study
In th e P h i l i p p i n e p r o v i n c e of I l o i l o ,
Calinog—officially known as the Municipality of
Calinog—is a first-class municipality. The town of
Calinog is tucked away in Panay's heart. It is the final
municipality in the region of central Iloilo Province
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Research Article
that borders Capiz. The municipality of Calinog shares
its mountain area borders with Antique, Capiz, and
Aklan and is situated in the fourth quadrant of Central
Panay.
A one-hour ride through a difficult, bumpy, sometimes
muddy, and dusty road from the población will take
you to the locale of the study. The Calinog Mountain
Elementary School (not the real school’s name) being
one of the few complete elementary schools in these
mountainous areas, this is somehow located in the
center of 13 mountain barangays of these areas. It has
many learners who live in far-flung areas.
Participants
The researchers of this study involved three (3) cases
of parents selected through purposive sampling.
Case 1 (Parent A)
Parent A is a mother of 7 children, two of which are
Grade 1, one Grade 6 and four junior high school
students. She is 41 years old and residents of one of
the mountain Barangays in the municipality of
Calinog. She attended college but was not able to
finish it due to poverty. She is currently working as
barangay treasurer in their barangay. She had shared a
lot of experiences being a parent of 7 learners. The
distance from their house in school is very far. They
must walk for almost 10 kilometers for 1 and a half
hour just to get to school. It becomes even more
difficult when it rains, for, they have to trek slippery,
muddy and perilous road.
Although she had attended college but still, she is
having difficulty in teaching and guiding her children
in their modular learning. Other than attending to the
needs of her 7 children of their lessons, she had shared
that her knowledge was not enough to help all of them
in teaching lessons, especially is her high school
children. She also explained that her job as barangay
treasurer required her to be in town always, that is why
she had difficulty in supervising the modular learning
of her children. She couldn’t entrust her children to her
husband since her husband is only an elementary
graduate and is always busy on the farm.
Case 2 (Parent B)
Having two children in elementary school, parent B
still had a hard time involving herself with children’s
studies. For her during those days having to read and
write is already enough. She got married early due to
poverty, she was allowed by her parents to get married
at an early stage with a man she barely knows in
exchange for an amount of money and a carabao. She
Palmes & Palmes
is only a plain housewife while her husband is working
in their small farm. They are currently living in a
barangay in a very far away barangay. That is why,
they have to let their children to stay with her brother’s
house in a barangay closer to the school. Since their
barangay where they live is approximately 17
kilometers and they have to walk for 2 hours.
Despite having a lot of time for her children, she does
not have the capacity to teach and follow up the
modular lessons. She even agreed that her children are
better readers compared to her. That is why she and
her husband are working so hard just to support their
children. They even shared and agreed that modular
learning is not good in students learning. Parents and
students like their family really need teachers to teach
their children though face to face open so that learning
will be more effective.
All she could do was follow up if their children are
studying and answering their module. Implementing
discipline in their studies is the only thing they can do
for their children.
Case 3 (Parent C)
Having children who are still studying is very difficult.
What could be more difficult having 12 children
mostly of them are still studying and have been
amplified by modular learning modality in times of
pandemic. What made it worse is that parent C only
finished Grade 4. The only advantage she has is that
the house is near the school.
Although she has raised children, all of them have not
gone to college. Some of them had to stop their studies
to work and help the family. But sadly, her grown up
children had married at an early age because also of
poverty. She and her husband were left to guide and
attend to their children.
It is given that parent C has no capacity to teach her
children since her knowledge is limited. They had to
work even at an old age on farms of other people and
neighbors. That is why they must leave their children
on their own to do their lesson/module. For them, they
would really appreciate it if the learning modality were
face to face. As much as they want their children to
learn and to finish studies they cannot do otherwise
since their knowledge is limited and they are
financially incapable.
But they always believe in education, that is why as
much as possible they do not want their children to
work jeopardizing their studies. They see to it that they
give opportunity to their children for their
studies.
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Other sources of data were the interviews of other Results and Discussion
informants like the teacher advisers, the learner whose
parents were chosen as participants and other
significant school stakeholders. The data that were Parental Involvement in Challenged Areas
gathered from them were used for triangulating data
In their child's general growth and education, parents
gathered from the primary participants.
Data-gathering Methods
Formal and informal interviews with the participants
and significant others were conducted. The researchers
also made use of observation in school and in-home
visits. This involved observation of the issues,
difficulties, challenges and problems encountered as
parent’s involvement in the modular learning of their
students. Observations were made several times to
confirm the information gathered. It would be quite difficult for the study participants,
Data Analysis
Following the completion of the study, line transcripts
were used to transcribe the interviews. The researchers
then tagged pertinent parts, such as pertinent words,
phrases, sentences, or sections. After eliminating the
irrelevant codes, the researcher went over the
developed codes and kept only the ones she considered
meaningful, which she then grouped into themes.
These classifications were not of the same kind. They
might be about things, methods, variations, or
anything else. The primary findings of the data were
those from the standpoint of the study participants, it
would now constitute new information. The researcher
determined whether there was a hierarchy among the
categories by examining whether it was more
important than the other categories. Triangulation was
used to examine and cross-check the qualitative data.
The researcher checked the information provided by
the informants to see if it coincided with that of the
significant others who were also interviewed in order
to guarantee the accuracy of the transcripts. The
researcher outlined the categories and how they were
connected when writing up the findings. The
participant's parental involvement in the modular
distance modality in underserved areas was the first
scenario the researcher discussed. The researchers then
summarized the case using their insights. In analyzing
the findings in the context of, for instance, findings
from related, prior studies published in journals,
theories and notions from the area of study, as well as
other pertinent factors, a neutral viewpoint was taken
into consideration.
Palmes & Palmes
are crucial. Along with meeting their basic needs and
teaching their children, parents nurture their offspring
by showing them love, care, support, and a basic grasp
of the world. Similar to this, they act as a child's
primary and ongoing educators before they begin
formal schooling and continue to have a significant
impact on their learning both inside and outside of the
classroom. As a result, the family and parents are
regarded as the child's educational partners and
supports.
who live in challenging locations, to actively
participate in their children's education, particularly
when it comes to the modular learning approach.
Parental home-based involvement was especially
important in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the
changes it brought to pupils' learning. To adjust to the
change, many adjustments were made. Due to the
problem's location in a challenging place, however, it
was emphasized even more, making parental
engagement seem impossible.
Based on the presented cases of the participants the
ways how parents in challenged areas get involved
with the modular learning of their students were the
following: (1) Creating time and opportunity for study;
(2) Encouragement; and (3) Monitoring and
Discipline.
Creating Time and Opportunity for Study. Because
of their lack of education, parents in every example
mentioned were unable to serve as their children's at-
home teachers. The area in which the participants are
always engaged is in providing their learners with the
time and opportunity to study. Not all kids in
disadvantaged communities had the chance to go to
school. Some of them grow up being compelled to
labor for their family. The adoption of a modular
learning approach has provided possibilities for
students to work while they learn. Unfortunately, a lot
of people find it difficult to balance employment and
school. However, the participants claimed that despite
the difficulties they experience, they are doing their
best to offer their kids the chance to learn. Instead of
completing challenging household and employment
tasks, they want their kids to concentrate on their
schoolwork. However, there are times when they must
request that their child work for their household.
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Despite their subpar educational backgrounds, they all
teach values education. For them, since they can’t
teach their children about their modular topics,
providing opportunity and their learner’s need is the
only way for them to show their support for their
children’s education.
Encouragement. Parents want what is best for their
kids, which includes providing them with the
necessary emotional support. Despite the fact that
positive reinforcement may appear like a wonderful
parenting idea, it is thought that positive reinforcement
really enhances children's conduct. This is another way
that a parent can get involved in their child's
educational process. Due to their lack of knowledge in
many subjects included in their children's lessons, they
occasionally lack the ability to serve as tutors or
teachers for their kids. However, this did not stop them
from participating.
When a child is learning in a modular way, where they
occasionally lose enthusiasm, providing emotional
support in the form of encouragement for them is just
as crucial as teaching them. The participants constantly
admonish their kids to persevere in spite of their
circumstances of poverty and to place a high value on
their education because, in their eyes, it is their key to
prosperity. According to them, the learners are
consistently motivated by being reminded of their
current circumstances.
Monitoring and Discipline. When the participants
were questioned regarding their level of understanding
of the lesson's material, they all acknowledged that
they lacked the necessary mastery or that their
understanding was inadequate for them to instruct their
children. However, when asked to facilitate the
modular learning process, the three of them lack
confidence in their ability to train their kids. They only
know to keep an eye on their youngster to see if they
are completing their modules and applying discipline
to their studies.
Students with good discipline are more likely to learn
in class, even in face-to-face settings. It would take a
lot of discipline for a learner to complete their modular
exercises religiously, as there are numerous
circumstances that could influence or obstruct their
ability to learn using this modality.
Issues and Challenges Encountered by Parents in
Challenged Areas in Modular Learning
Many educators, families, and students were
unprepared for the abrupt change that occurred with
Palmes & Palmes
the pandemic. As a result, some difficulties and
problems with increased parental involvement while
engaging and attempting to support their children in
various levels and types of distance learning have
come to light (Garbe, Ogurlu, Logan & Cook, 2020).
Parental participation, according to Borup et al.
(2014), has a major impact on students' academic
success in traditional school settings as well as their
success in modular learning. However, parents should
be completely aware of their obligations in the online
learning environment. If not, parents might find it
difficult to grasp their role in helping their kids learn
online, which could have an impact on how they
interact with them and ultimately have an impact on
how well the kids learn.
The issues and challenges faced in the parental
involvement gathered during the interview included
different responses were which was sorted into several
categories, as follows:
Parents Lack of Knowledge. One of the noted
challenges faced by the parents in the modular learning
of their children before and during pandemic was the
lack of knowledge and capacity to teach the different
lessons from modules. Parents in challenged areas
usually had not completed their studies/education.
Some or most of them had not gone to school or had
only attained elementary level. Out of the 3
participants 2 were only elementary level and 1 was a
college. Elementary learners had seven to eight
different subject areas. On a weekly basis, these
students participated in the various activities for each
and every module by subject. Parents were supposed
to support their children in all subject areas so that
they may successfully move from one activity to the
next. The situation was a challenge for parents who
had just completed elementary school. The standard of
education for their kids was in jeopardy. In contrast to
face-to-face instruction, parents send their children to
school and trust the instructor to look after them while
they are in class.
Unpleasant Behavior of their Children in
Answering the Modules. According to the
participants, another challenge that parents face on the
modular learning setup of their children was their
unpleasant behaviors. All agreed that their children
manifested different undesirable behaviors that was
sometimes mishandled by parents. Most of the time,
children were not in the mood to answer their modules.
Especially when they were preoccupied by other
things, they did not want to be under pressure and
pushed to complete their assignments. Children are not
accustomed to going to school via module. They were
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made to realize that education occurred in classrooms.
They were restricted within the house, only allowed to
see friends, and prohibited from meeting their teachers
under the new educational system. The only people
they could interact with right now were their parents
and siblings.
One of the parents shared that it was difficult to
sometimes convince her child to answer the module, it
took a great deal of convincing strategy for them to
follow what they need to do. The monotony of the
module's activities, which were restricted to reading
and writing, was making kids irritable and impatient.
Numerous engaging activities were suggested in light
of kids' numerous intelligences. However, the majority
of the time the modules were just exercises and
assessments on paper. In this case, teachers might offer
a variety of exercises that call for movement and
classroom involvement. Given the constraints and
limits of in-person instruction, parents were actually
faced with a difficulty in trying to make their children
learn.
Working Parents. Most of the parents might confront
this problem on time management. .The participants
could no longer provide their children the time needed
to learn through their module since they worked
throughout the day. Parents were no longer able to
instruct or supervise their kids because they were using
all of their physical strength to work. In addition to the
various issues they had to balance, they also had to
give their children's education top priority at this time.
The lack of training the study participants received
regarding how to manage homeschooling their
children must have caused them stress and anxiety.
One mom explained that she could not attend to her
child's module because she had to work every day and
with her husband.
Vulnerable to Distraction. In answering their
modules at home, according to the participants, there
were many distractions as compared to classroom
where learning was focused and oriented. At home, the
youngsters can be distracted from their studies by their
siblings, neighbors, or playmates. The availability of
many items in the houses, such as televisions,
telephones, and other electronics, may cause these
kids' attention to wander from their lessons. Children
select more engaging and enjoyable home activities
from their modules. They had no control over the
things that diverted their attention and attention span.
Children exhibited misbehavior when they were
distracted because they were no longer motivated to
complete their module. In spite of the epidemic and
constraints on their children attending traditional
Palmes & Palmes
schools, parents might try out various tactics to get
around problems and keep their children's education
going. Parents who have a child enrolled in modular
distance learning must maintain hope and fortitude in
the face of a variety of obstacles.
Strategies Employed by Parents in Challenged
Areas in Modular Learning
Remote learning has become popular in the
educational field. Students, instructors, and parents in
particular found this dynamic change in the
educational environment to be overwhelming. The
involvement of parents and guardians in their
children's education is more crucial than ever in this
new norm. Students won't advance as they should
without parental and guardian help. Teachers are not
physically present in the virtual environment to track
each student's development, in contrast to the school-
based setting.
Constant Update with the Teacher. The parents who
are taking part in their children's modular learning
should admit that they lack the skills necessary for
self-involvement. Despite their ignorance, the
participants-maintained contact with the teachers to
ask for updates and guidance on how to assist their
children. The participants' hope that their children
would still learn something despite this modular
learn in g came from keep in g the lines of
communication open with teachers. They all concurred
that in a distance learning environment, this is much
more crucial. Students learned for a sizable portion of
the day in front of their parents at home. Working with
the student, or at the very least at home with the child,
helped them understand their responsibility. The
instructor could help them in this way. Additionally,
they believed that the teacher's comments was crucial
information that would help them further enhance their
child's education.
Encourage Simple Routines. It would be unfair to
expect parents and guardians to produce the same
teaching and supervision level as certified teachers,
especially the participant who in their educational
attainment were not capable of teach nor guide their
children. In addition to its impact on the child's
schooling, the parents were concerned about a great
deal of other things. Every participant acknowledged
that they were already concerned, particularly about
their everyday requirements. It is vital to assist them
by giving them straightforward advice on creating
schedules and learning environments. They should be
given synchronous learning timetables by their
teachers that they may readily follow at home. They
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anticipated that the teachers would take the time to talk
to the parents about the expected behavior. Simple
learning routines were encouraged, which helped
students develop discipline and productivity. Teachers
should give parents advice on how to increase their
kids' focus and productivity. This might involve
everything from creating a favorable studying
atmosphere to teaching kids how to stay away from
online distractions. This should make the job of the
teacher easier and help online learning programs
succeed. Parents' involvement is significant and
essential to students' development, just as it is in more
traditional learning environments. Because of this, it is
equally crucial for institutions like schools to make
every effort to increase parent and guardian
engagement.
Make Use of Available Support Systems. This is the
method and location by which the participants use
material, emotional, and spiritual support. Sadly, this
was a participant who was acting alone and over
whom they frequently had very little influence. Given
their ability, they were extremely appreciative of the
folks who were always willing to assist them. Without
these systems of assistance, their kids would have
ended up doing it by themselves. However, students
spent the most of their time working on their modular
assignments alone, which they found extremely
challenging in the absence of a teacher or mentor.
Conclusion
Strengthening the quality of education is not a single
issue. This involved factors such as school, teacher,
student, parent, and other relevant parties. Importantly,
it needs a very strong commitment of involvement
from those parties to make it happen. When parents are
involved in their children’s education, both children
and parents are likely to benefit.
Educators and parents play major roles in the
educational success of students. Students need a
positive learning experience to succeed in school: one
providing support, motivation, and quality instruction.
With the increasing demands on the family, parental
support in the education of students extends beyond
the school building.
Parental involvement in the education of students
begins at home with the parents providing a safe and
healthy environment, appropriate learning experiences,
support, and a positive attitude about school. Several
studies indicate increased academic achievement with
students that have involved parents (Epstein, 2009;
Palmes & Palmes
Greenwood & Hickman, 1991; Henderson & Berla,
1994; Rumberger et al., 1990; Swap, 1993; Whitaker
& Fiore, 2001). Studies also indicate that parental
involvement is most effective when viewed as a
partnership between educators and parents (Davies,
1996; Emeagwali, 2009; Epstein, 2009). By examining
parents’ and teachers’ perceptions, educators and
parents should have a better understanding of effective
parental involvement practices in promoting student
achievement.
Being a parent is a complex matter. It requires eternal
love, devotion, and patience to become an effective
one. The role of guiding their children is among the
responsibilities of a parent despite their incapabilities.
Likewise, it is a shared obligation between the parents
and the school to educate children and make
opportunities for them to socialize. It is well accepted
that children’s development and success greatly matter
to parents.
Students perform well in school, no matter what their
parent’s educational attainment, economic status, and
ethnic background are as long as parents involved in
their children’s education (Ma et al., 2016). According
to Chen (2021), parents can show their children their
involvement in their lives by doing simple things like
asking them about school or helping them with
homework. Parents who are involved in their
children’s education not only help them excel
academically but also give the teachers more
confidence in delivering the lesson to help children
reach their full potential.
During the implementation of the Modular Distance
Learning modality, parents themselves went to school
to get and submit modules and other learning outputs
of their children. At home, they assisted their children
in answering the activities enclosed in modules. Even
working parents and even those parents who were
incapable of teaching their children devoted time to
help their children accomplished the given tasks in
self-learning modules.
Most parents would like to help their children learn,
but they might not be able to do so due to various
challenges. First, there were financial problems and
limited access to learning materials which considered
key barriers that obstruct parental involvement.
Hornby and Lafaele (2011) argued that parental
involvement is a complicated matter as it is shaped and
limited by many barriers which are related to parents
and families, children, teachers, and social issues. In
order not to affect the effectiveness of parental
involvement, educators should clearly understand
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Research Article
these underlying factors. Second, Yulianti et al. (2019)
noted that parents with a low level of education tended
to see themselves as incapable and not self-efficacious
as they did not have flexible working hours and they
faced financial issues, preventing them from being
actively involved in their children’s learning.
Along with the challenges encountered during distance
learning, Sorensen’s (2012) study revealed the most
challenging and favorable aspects of online learning
for parents is keeping their children on schedule while
completing their coursework. In addition, schools and
teachers simply do not have enough guidance to
improve parental engagement experience, especially
with the effective use of technology (Goodall, 2016).
Other challenges encountered on distance learning
include economic resources, lack of internet access,
lack of interest in using the technology, and having
low digital self-efficacy (Garbe et. al., 2020). Teachers
revealed that parents can help them with organizing
and managing students’ schedules, nurturing
relationships and interactions, monitoring and
motivating student engagement and instructing
students when needed (Borup, 2016). Likewise, in the
study of Garbe et al. (2020), it was disclosed that
parents agreed with the school closure policy and were
generally satisfied with the level of support provided
by school districts whilst describing some areas of
struggle. Parents described having difficulties with
balancing responsibilities, learner motivation,
accessibility, and learning outcomes.
It is important to remember that praise and
encouragement are two very different things. Praise
tends to focus on the child and what the parent thinks
or feels, which often includes judgement. Children
who grow up being praised usually tend to do things to
please adults. On the other hand, encouragement is a
non-judgmental route that parents can take.
Encouraging statements tend to point out the specific
facts or the process instead of evaluation of the child.
Children who grow up in an environment where they
are encouraged tend to develop a stronger sense of
self-motivation and pride in themselves, with less
concern about pleasing others. Encouragement works
because it focuses on effort, sets up children for
success, and teaches children to evaluate themselves
on their own merits (Popkin, 2019).
To make sure that encouragement with children is
successful, keep it honest, sincere, and to the point.
Focus on their effort and not the child and eventually
you will see positive results (Popkin, 2019). If there is
an opportunity, start with encouragement at a young
age. If that is not an option, it’s okay to start. Be sure
Palmes & Palmes
that they upon knowing they are working hard,
describe their good behavior, praise their effort rather
than their ability, and look for the little changes.
Regular parental praise is a great way to improve a
child’s well-being.
Support System is one that individual students often
have very little control of. It is also important to note
that there are plenty of successful people who did not
have a good support system when growing up. It is
something that one can overcome, but it does make it a
lot easier if one has a healthy support system in place.
These are people who have one’s best interest in mind.
They push one to success, offer advice, and guide and
direct one’s decisions throughout one’s life. They are
there in times of adversity and they cheer up in times
when one is successful. Having a great support system
does not make or break one as a student, but it gives
one an advantage. Most of the students also said that
help comes from other people like private groups,
teachers, and unexpected people. The support may not
be enough, but for them it is already a big thing, for
they know how to maximize the use of it. All they
need is the opportunity to have a support system that
gives them an advantage.
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Affiliations and Corresponding Information
Harlyn L. Palmes
Supanga Elementary School
Department of Education – Philippines
Harry R. Palmes, PhD
Calinog National Comprehensive High School
Department of Education – Philippines
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