Predictors of the Subjective Effectiveness of Emergency Remote Teaching during the First Phase of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Worldwide school closures which were happening during the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020 created a great lesson about the conditions for effective teaching. As temporary school closures seem very likely to occur in the forthcoming school year(s), at least locally, it is worthwhile to exploit this lesson to learn more about the capacities and resources that can be utilised in both emergency remote teaching (ERT) and regular teaching, beyond the pandemic. This research was initiated in the third week of ERT, on 13 April 2020, and involved 154 teachers in 87 schools in Poland. Its purpose was to identify predictors of subjective effectiveness of emergency remote teaching (SEERT) that might be important for remote teaching pedagogy in general. The results show that the best predictors of the SEERT are self-efficacy, digital competence and peer support from other teachers. The situation of the pandemic in a sense confirms the key role of transferable resources in the performance of teachers' professional duties and sets a path for strengthening these in teacher training and continuing professional development programmes to increase capacity for both regular and remote teaching.

Assisting Strategies of the Parents of Students with Special Educational Needs in the Emergency Remote Learning in Poland.

The study had four objectives: (a) identifying and characterizing strategies for involving parents of students with SEN (students with special educational needs) in remote education during the COVID-19 pandemic; (b) comparing these strategies with those used by parents of students without SEN (non-SEN students); (c) identifying predictors of parental involvement in the remote education of students with SEN; (d) checking whether the identified strategies differentiate the perceived barriers and benefits of remote learning. In total, 421 parents of primary school students participated in the study, 83 of whom (20%) were parents of children with SEN (SEN group). Based on the factor analysis of the results (respondents completed a 66-item electronic questionnaire), three main strategies for parental involvement in children's remote education were identified: (1) committed teacher (CT), with 40% in the SEN group and 55% in the non-SEN group; (2) autonomy-supporting coach (ASC), with 22% in the SEN group and 26% in the non-SEN group; (3) committed teacher and reliever (CTR), with 38% in the SEN group and 19% in the non-SEN group. The strongest predictor of parental involvement with SEN students in the role of committed teacher was excessive demands from school. Parents whose children showed low motivation to learn were the most likely to do some of their children's school tasks for them and apply the committed teacher and reliever strategy. The positive aspects of remote education were mostly noticed by moderately committed parents who gave their children a lot of autonomy (autonomy-supporting coaches). The obtained results can be included in the optimization of schools' activities in terms of organizing remote education for students with SEN and cooperating with parents.

Parental involvement in remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic-Dominant approaches and their diverse implications.

The aim of the study on which this article reports was to identify parents' approaches to their children's remote education during the COVID-19 pandemic in April and May 2020. Additionally, this investigation sought to determine the role of parent perceptions of the barriers and benefits of remote education. The research draws on a survey of 421 parents of primary school students, in which a 66-item questionnaire (4 subscales) was used. Analysis revealed three main clusters that represent approaches adopted by parents: (1) the committed teacher approach, (2) the autonomy-supporting coach, and (3) the committed teacher and intervener. The parents in cluster 3 emphasised perceived barriers to remote learning more than parents in clusters 1 and 2. Regarding perceptions of the benefits, statistically significant differences were found in perceptions of child development facilitated by remote education (the parents in cluster 2 rated it most positively). The results can be used to support parents and schools in the provision of optimal remote learning.