Some students only spoke to the teacher once for several weeks

The study also shows that many students in the lower level did not have attendance requirements, that is, they did not need to log in to the school platform or similar things to show the teacher that they were in the school day:

• One in four (23%) students in the small steps had no routine to show attendance. For one in four (27 percent) of these students, it was enough to turn in assignments. Less than half (45 percent) of the youngest students had daily attendance.
• At the intermediate level (5th to 7th grade), four out of five (82 percent) students attended every day.
• At the youth stage, almost all (94 percent) students had daily attendance.

Astrid Roe, Mars Blikstad-Balas and Kirsti Klette from the University of Oslo (UiO), as well as Cecilie Pedersen Dalland at the Oslo Met, have completed the study.

Astrid Roe is surprised that less than half of the students in the small steps have been in contact with their teacher every day.

– Teachers may have contacted, but students may not have been available. This is not what the study says, says Roe.

I had to adapt on the way

Marianne Bergseng thinks that the contact with the school has been good.

– Teachers have called children to speak, not only about subjects, but also about how things are going. I think it was good.

– We have experienced the Høyenhall school as very responsive and helpful along the way. If there has been talk of adjustments to workloads, tasks or technical challenges, then there has been a good dialogue.

– Overall, things have gone wonderfully well, I think. But we do know that there are children who have struggled, and it is very good that schools are reopened.

Older children received the closest follow-up.

Cecilie Pedersen Dalland is also surprised by the small contact between the youngest students and the teacher.

– Although many students in the youth stage have spoken to teachers several times a day, many students in the child stage have only spoken to the teacher once or twice for several weeks.

In the part of the study in which parents describe the challenges with home schooling, the researchers see that several parents have been frustrated by this.

“Many of those who have children in both the juvenile and infant stages are frustrated that the older son has received much closer follow-up from his teachers,” explains Dalland.

Several parents describe the lack of follow-up and contact with the school as a great challenge. They note that it can be challenging to motivate students to constantly complete assignments if they do not receive regular feedback from their teacher or speak to other students.

Digitization to each individual teacher

Another factor that surprised the researchers is that very few (16 percent) of the small-scale students had direct instruction via Skype and the like with a teacher. In comparison, six out of ten (60 percent) of students at the junior level had direct instruction.

Professor Mars Blikstad-Balas says research has long pointed out that there is great variation in whether schools choose to digitize.

– It is especially true that the youngest children, who generally receive the least follow-up, but not surprisingly, schools and teachers to a very different degree were equipped to do all of the teaching digitally. Digitally, too, in every school, digitization has been entirely by each teacher, says Blikstad-Balas.

Ombudsman for Children: – This is serious

The Ombudsman for Children, Inga Bejer Engh, believes that the survey figures confirm some of his concerns that some children have not been granted the right to education during the period of home schooling.

This is serious. The figures indicate that too much has been left to parents, which may help to increase the differences between students. Results for 1-4. The steps are particularly concerning because most students have not learned as many learning strategies and need adult support, says Bejer Engh.

– I hope schools map what learning outcomes individual students have had during the home schooling period and find out who needs more support in the coming period, says Bejer Engh.

– You must take steps to help students.

She believes that children who are vulnerable can be hit harder when necessary support and follow-up fail.

– Other reports also show that school closings have negatively affected vulnerable children, and that inadequate follow-up is one of the main problems. Here two months without this being discovered can have major consequences, says Bejer Engh.

She believes it is important for schools to talk to students about how they have had it while at home and to find out if they have acquired the competence of teachers or if there are other reasons for concern for students.

– If not, steps must be taken quickly to help the student, says Bejer Engh.

The Minister of Education and Research will contribute to closing the knowledge gaps.

Education Minister Guri Melby believes the study shows that too many students have not received the follow-up they need, although many teachers have come a long way in an extraordinary situation.

– One of the reasons we chose to open schools first for the youngest was precisely because they have fewer benefits of homeschooling. It may seem that high schools are generally better equipped for a digital home school than for elementary schools, both in terms of competition and equipment, says Melby.

She says the ministry is now looking at how they can help more people access digital equipment and support for various forms of homeschooling.

– We are now working to facilitate a good reopening. For those students who, for various reasons, cannot return to school, the government will present a NOK 140 million package to raise digital education at school.

– In addition, we developed several action packages for vulnerable children, which can, among other things, help close knowledge gaps and lost progression, says Melby.