School closures responsible for 50% of the declining rates of mother’s mental health

Researchers at the Universities of Essex, Surrey and Birmingham highlighted in a study that home-schooling and school closures was responsible for 50% of the declining rates in mental health witnessed in mothers. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, parents have become more worried than ever about their kids’ education and day-to-day wellbeing, having undeniable impacts on the mental health of UK adults. This is underpinned by research from the UK’s most trusted tutoring platform, MyTutor, unveiling that 44% of British parents worried that their abilities as a home educator has negatively impacted their child’s educational progression.

As this Sunday marks World Mental Health Day, MyTutor has revealed parents’ top-line worries – ranging from their education to diet and sleep. The research has found that 44% of parents feel that their abilities as home educators during school closures have caused them to develop learning gaps which will slow their educational progress in the long term. The impact of having to stay at home for most of the last 18 months, rather than at school surrounded by peers, has caused 43% parents to worry that their kids will struggle to readjust to the socially busy school environment this term, with concerns that they will be bullied or struggle to make friends again. As well as this, MyTutor’s national research has revealed that 40% of parents right now are worried that their child is eating poorly as a result of the pandemic. The stress of being socially isolated, learning from home and fearing the spread of the coronavirus has meant that many teens are reaching for junk food and fast food to comfort their nerves, causing further concern for their mental and physical health as a result. Further to these worries, 24% parents revealed that they fear their child’s long term career progress has been damaged, and 11% feel their child isn’t ready for the new term.

Key statistics:

44% (4,450,000) of parents worry that their abilities as a home educator has negatively impacted their child’s educational progression
43% (4,929,000) of parents worry about their child making friends or being bullied
40% (4,582,000) of parents worry about whether their child is eating the right things
35% (3,993,000) of parents worry about their child’s friendship group and influencers
34% (3,868,000) of parents worry that their child spends too much time on social media
34% (3,848,000) of parents worry that their child isn’t happy in themselves
31% (3,561,000) of parents worry that their child is not doing enough exercise
28% (3,171,000) of parents worry that their child doesn’t find it easy to communicate how they’re feeling
26% (2,426,000) of parents worry that as result of the pandemic, their child’s career progression has been hindered
28% (3,145,000) of parents worry that lockdown has harmed their child’s ability to interact with others
25% (2,844,000) of parents worry that their child is so shy it will hold them back from opportunities in life
22% (2,525,000) of parents worry that their child won’t be able to do the things that their peers will do in life because they (the parents) don’t have the money for it
20% (2,228,000) of parents worry that their child doesn’t know what they want to do in life
14% (1,611,000) of parents worry that their child isn’t prepared for the rigours of the new school term
Bertie Hubbard, co-founder and CEO of MyTutor, discusses parental worries as the new academic year begins:

“The impact of the pandemic on UK families has been immense – from education to the mental and physical health of our children and teens. It’s natural for parents to worry about their child, but it’s helpful to remember that everyone is in the same boat, and as the new academic term kicks off, every student has the chance to catch up on lost learning and achieve the best grades they’re capable of. Getting 1-1 support from a tutor can help ease parental worry and teen stress over a whole host of issues. The focus of 1-1 tuition from a subject and curriculum expert means teens can focus on filling in learning gaps. Our tutors are all university students and recent grads, so they double up as role models, offering teens much-needed reassurance and a boost in confidence – 88% students say that lessons made them feel more confident.”

One parent, Miranda O’Gara, discusses the impact a Maths GCSE tutor had on her daughter:

“My daughter was predicted a 7 for maths GCSE in year 10 but with COVID her grade was dropping and she had massively lost all confidence in her maths ability – she was in a top set but was crying every day over maths. Her grade had slipped to a 4/5 and she needed a 6 to get into sixth form. Ebony was very calm and reassuring. She listened to my daughter and helped her with any topics she needed to work on. She gave her lots of praise and reassurance as they worked together and soon the crying stopped and my daughter’s mindset re maths changed for the better! Ebony’s subject knowledge was great; she always knew what topic my daughter was referring to and had lots of example questions to work through. My daughter loved her tutor sessions and was even happy doing Ebony’s ‘homework’. Today we have found out that she achieved a 6 in maths, which is what she needed to get.”