Home Learning on Students’ Mental Health ?

                    The COVID-19 pandemic has brought great changes in all aspects of human life. Putting the spotlight on changes of education in Indonesia, home learning is the option chosen by the government in order to minimize the spread of the virus while still educate students. However, home learning  has its own advantages and disadvantages.  On the one hand, the application of home learning has successfully meet its goals to reduce the spread of COVID-19 among students and still give out quality education, on the other hand, there are some problems that arise as a result of the instant shift.

                    Traditional learning was still applied throughout the beginning of the year 2020. Around the month of March, COVID-19 officially entered the country and the school system instantly shifted to the home learning. The problem that tends to be in the spotlight is the mental health of students facing this new style of education. In addition to that, the pressure to adapt quickly due to the instant shift is also a large contributor to students’ mental issues.

                    Broadly speaking, home learning is considered less fun, especially for students. This is made clear by a survey conducted by the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI) on home learning with 1,700 respondents. The survey results showed that out of 1,700 respondents, 77.8% of respondents stated that the tasks were piling up because all the teachers would be giving them assignments with limited time. Meanwhile, 37.1% of respondents complained about the limited time spent on assignments, which made students less rested and tired. As many as 42.2% of respondents stated that they did not have internet quota and 15.6% of respondents did not have adequate facilities such as laptops or cell phones with adequate specifications for online learning.

 

                    To find out whether during distance learning students experience anxiety, stress, or depression, the 7th semester of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Atma Jaya Catholic University of Indonesia, Jakarta as well as participants in the Medical Education Science (GPA) block conducted a survey by distributing questionnaires. As a result, there were 55 respondents who filled out the questionnaire. As many as 40 of them admitted to having mental health problems. Among them, 23 felt anxious, 32 felt anxious and stressed, and 4 felt the symptoms of the three, namely anxiety, stress, and depression. Based on these data, it is clear that home learning causes various negative impacts on students’ mental health.

 

                    A meeting held on Monday, March 30^th 2020, Dinas Pendidikan advised, among others, that so that Home Learning activities be carried out in a fun way, the activities carried out do not burden parents, the materials used for activities must not be bought outside, but use existing materials at home, strive for contextual activity, and don't give out too many tasks. If this appeal is applied correctly, especially the last point regarding assignments, it is estimated that students' mental health can improve.

 

  Written by :  Jessica Sungeriwan XIA2