Every day, Jessy Duncombe has to figure out how to put food on the table, help her two school-aged kids navigate the complexities of online learning, and keep her three-year-old daughter occupied and out of trouble. The government's move to extend online learning for at least another two weeks across southern Ontario is adding to the workload of single parents. Situation has big impact on single parents, expert saysBut the current system is putting single parents — predominantly women such as Duncombe — in precarious situations, said Beyhan Farhadi, a postdoctoral visitor at York University's faculty of education. Farhadi said the current model of online learning places too much emphasis on synchronous learning, during which a teacher delivers a live lesson to students over video chat. Farhadi is also concerned that some kids will suffer academically as they struggle to adapt to remote learning.

Source: CBC News January 09, 2021 17:26 UTC