شبكة المعلومات العربية التربوية

This study aimed to investigate mothers' demands on the type of schooling they preferred for their children in Saudi Arabia during the COVID- 19 pandemic. An analytical descriptive methodology was used, and the research sample consisted of 3468 mothers who have children at the ages three to seven years (kindergarteners or those who will enroll in first grade) in the academic year (2020/ 2021). Data was gathered through an electronic questionnaire that consisted of two major sections: demographics of participants and mothers' opinions on schooling during the COVID19 pandemic. The section on mothers' opinions was divided into three parts: perspective towards registering children in schools during the COVID- 19 pandemic, the support requested if schooling was to be held remotely, and preventive measurements demanded from schools if physical attendance to school was mandated (including social distancing precautions, precautions that schools/kindergartens need to apply, and safety precautions of children). Mothers were asked to choose three priorities that they believed should be applied in each section and to present further requests. The results showed variations in mothers’ views on their preferred option of enrolling children in school during the COVID- 19 pandemic. Mothers who preferred physical attendance discussed that one of the major reasons for this choice is that school atmosphere can never be compensated for through distance education; they also emphasized the inadequacy of remote education due to the lack of social interaction between children and their classmates and teachers. Moreover, mothers' precautionary measures in the event of physical presence at schools focused largely on the safety and health of children. The researchers suggested many recommendations regarding needed support for families in distance education and precautionary measures in the event of physical presence of children at schools during the COVID- 19 pandemic. (Published abstract)