Parent experiences of home‐schooling children with special educational needs or disabilities during the coronavirus pandemic

Abstract

Parents of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) took part in an online survey that explored their experiences of home‐schooling during the coronavirus pandemic. Two hundred and thirty‐eight parents from the UK responded to 49 questions about the resources and support they had received, their management and feelings surrounding home‐schooling. Chi‐square analyses were used to establish whether parents' experiences differed as a result of socio‐economic status (SES) or the nature of their child's SEND. Results indicated that parents were dissatisfied with the resources and support they had received for their child's educational and psychological needs. Parents felt inadequate and unprepared and believed that non‐attendance at school had and would have a detrimental effect on their child's education and mental health. Parents also described the negative impact of home‐schooling on their and their family's well‐being. Finally, SES and SEND‐type were not associated with parents' experiences of home‐schooling.