Pupils Learning Online – Parent/Guardian Survey Summary

We would like to thank you for taking the time to complete our survey. All your responses will be looked at
closely and we will use the data to build on the successes and also aim to improve in certain areas.

We had a total of 411 Parent/Guardian responses, accounting for a total of 525 out of the 650 pupils at
Hellenic Academy. This is approximately 81% of the pupil population. (Thank you!)

Below are chart summaries and selected parent comments to some of the questions asked.

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What challenges did your child/children face while learning online? How did they overcome
these difficulties?
No challenges with exception for missing teacher/peer interaction - where teachers have done videos etc this has
been very helpful
Uploading finished work/assignments seemed to be a complicated and tedious affair. Maybe we are doing it wrong
and some simple instructions from the IT dept on how to do this would help?
Needed to become more computer literate like downloading and uploading and scanning documents but he grasped
it by the end
Getting motivated to get out of bed and sit at her desk ready for the online lessons was a huge challenge. She
focuses better in a school environment where there are no distractions.
It was difficult to type the maths symbols and graphs on the Google Classroom documents to upload. This was
overcome by rewriting it on a piece of paper, scanning it in, and uploading the document.
Printing notes was not always easy or in a printer friendly format. Too much colour (very expensive) and sometimes
doesn't print at all.
Sometimes the instructions issued were unclear in terms of exactly what deliverables were required. This was
overcome by directly messaging the teacher for clarity.
Handing in the assignment, sometimes she would have to try it a couple of times before it her work actually got
submitted
Biggest problem was access to shared laptop (parent's work laptop), which meant that 'hand-in' deadlines were not
met. This was explained to teachers chasing the hand in of work and they were understanding. It did initially put a lot
of pressure on both parent and child
Uploading photos and videos due to poor internet connectivity. He had to wake up in the middle of the night when
internet speed was faster

Having numerous questions for the subject, and not having face to face time with teacher

iPhone could not open documents, so S***** had to borrow her brothers newer Mac. Submitting assignments was
hard for her. It was a hard for her to convert documents to PDF. But in the end, she succeeded and learned from the
experience :)
One on one explanations typically provided in the classroom were unavailable. Teachers were excellent in responding
to written enquiries submitted and we as parents assisted if we could
Teachers to please create specific assignments rather than put them in the class chat (as the due dates etc don't
come up and the assignment is easy to miss).

Submitting work on google classroom - didn’t know how to do it - overcame it by watching videos on line
 What Type of Lesson Content did they enjoy?
Powerpoint
Notes Presentations
20% 20% Powerpoint Presentations
Videos (made by other people)
Videos (made by their own teacher/s)
Live Streaming (e.g. Zoom, Google Meet etc)
Notes
Live Streaming (e.g.
Zoom, Google Meet etc)
13%
Videos (made by other
people)
23%

Videos (made by their

own teacher/s)
24%

Which lessons did your child/children enjoy most? It would be helpful if you could elaborate a
little here.
Videos that teachers did of their lessons, reference to videos to help them understand topics, in particular for
Mathematics, relevant YouTube clips
Chemistry - the teacher did videos and had a call for interaction
Maths - all her instructions clear and videos to explain very helpful and like being in real lesson - she found videos
online to share
Geography. Enjoyed doing a presentation

History because there was interaction with the teacher - she set up a video calls, responded to questions, put voice
notes on History WhatsApp group to explain work and answer questions.
English literature - These were very interactive.

Science - the assignments involved some critical thinking

Business studies as the teacher also made YouTube videos with her narrating the topic
My son liked Geography and Science the most because the lessons were structured well and he could answer them
straight on the computer without having to print out and scan back in. Music was well done too. We just had
technical difficulties.
My son enjoyed the Chemistry work the most, because the teacher gave enough information to learn effectively and
independently.
History because the lessons are pretty similar to the classroom lessons

Maths was good - video's explaining the new topic and followed by a worksheet.

Maths - because there were step by step processes and work needed to hand in . Felt like being in an actual lesson

History and Science because of varied assignments. English because they got to work in groups.

The Drama lessons for English literature, as they used a video-call app to do the lesson and seemed to be more
engaging because of that.

Science - online quizzes

Z**** enjoyed environmental the most cause she had to do more writing and graphs etc so in the end she
understood it more. PE was very enjoyable. T**** says the teachers sent very good videos to support their lessons
Chemistry because the teacher gave them quizzes and history because the teacher was very involved and asking
for feedback and gave them interesting videos clips
He enjoyed Science because he said the website was fun as it had power ups such as Streak Savers, Double
Jeopardy and Time Freezes so he enjoyed the learning experience.

He enjoyed Economics the most because the teacher was more precise on the tasks that needed to be done.
Physics because each day the teacher would give us a test making the topic much easier to understand and
allowing me to know which areas I needed to tackle

S**** enjoyed Classics

English and French, easily understandable and interesting

Physics. The teacher used live streaming during the lesson which helped mimic a classroom setting and helped
concentration

Computer Science and Accounts - was good revision for him.

My child enjoyed Maths the most as the teacher would send videos explaining the way to do a specific sum and
revise the work he sent to my child via a video.
Maths, Chemistry, English Lit and English Lang, Economics - instructions were very easy to follow and updated
constantly,
Art - because he could carry on without distraction
Maths - because teacher posted videos explaining and went over exercises
Geo - because he posted case studies and notes and exercises afterwards which were easy to follow
Music. It was properly planned and the group chats were helpful

Greek and History. Because it was more out of the box type activities. This was more fun than the usual stuff!

B**** (Form 2) - videos & online class quizzes (fun). N**** (Form 4) - Art & Geo (work load fair and power point
presentations good)

PE because there were YouTube Video's sent and clear work given and workload was acceptable. Business Studies
because the teacher made her own YouTube videos.

Biology - useful quizzes and on line game sites

Form 1: Geography - good use of topic videos. Classics lessons - layout starting with riddle, fun approach, easy
going/ no scary deadlines.
Form 3: Chemistry lessons as teacher used Google Meets and sent explanatory videos.

Geography. She gives fantastic online lessons with very clear explanations. Thank you.

Some teachers (Geography and Mathematics) used Google Meet to explain and give a live class, Z*** found this
helpful

She enjoyed Physics the most as there was a physical experiment to be done

All of them, Lit/Lang teacher used Google Meet to read a book and discuss a play which was a unique and
appropriate approach. English (Form 1) teacher used video conferencing for group discussions and exercises
which was a highlight for R****.
Enjoyed the Maths teacher’s voice over on video maths lessons, he went through given homework and explained it.
Thumbs up

Physics lessons. Mainly because the teacher was communicative, giving feedback quickly.

Just super excited with everything

[Turn Over
Do you have any suggestions on what can be done to make the learning experience better for
your child/children at home?
Collaboration between teachers so that students not overloaded with work, perhaps stick to the normal school
schedule as far as possible?

No it’s perfect I even managed to track submissions and outcomes

More Google Meet lessons. Work due dates and given earlier in day. J**** said that it was very helpful when notes
sent were accompanied by a video sent from teacher explaining the notes. Whilst I have said just right for workload.
A****'s workload seemed to be too little and Jessica seemed to have a lot of Maths. But didn't have an issue coping
with the workload.
Maybe parents getting info/reports on their email a list of work to be done and dates to hand in. I felt a little blind
and to be honest am cautiously proud of my girls as they got on and just did the work, but don’t know what they did
exactly besides the videos they sent showed us and don’t know how well their work was done either. I have two
younger primary school children so was quite busy with them sorting their work out
More videos made by the teacher and Zoom/Google Meet lessons. More time to complete the assignments.
Teachers being online at same time as the lesson would be helpful
Being able to speak to the teacher during the lesson period would be helpful - through Zoom. Both kids only
communicated via Google Classroom via app and got a reply through email. Tedious and waiting for a response
meant work came to a halt.
I think it's worked great so far. Perhaps more interaction with videos would be great. Returned marked work/
feedback is also important.
We think it went fairly well considering this was the first time to use this way of learning. My daughter in form four
was however upset with the disruptive behaviour of some students on google meet lessons. It can’t have been
pleasant for the teachers either.
They enjoyed interactive learning by far the most (responding to presentations and making their own), rather than
just answering questions from a textbook.

Encourage more teacher videos and encourage lessons to be as long as the school classroom lessons and no
longer to encourage better use of their time , more accountability
Perhaps Zoom for Biology and Sciences.
To receive the day's work first thing in the morning to avoid the children having to sit around and wait for it.
Can deadlines be reasonable, taking into account the very real challenges of ZESA, Wi-Fi connectivity, Fuel etc which
can affect speed with which assignments are handed in.

Were there any challenges to motivate your child/children to work? If so, why?
Naturally being in "holiday mode" with everyone home and not having a routine made working a little more difficult
but they managed

No - both kids were disciplined. They weren't allowed to do leisure things until work was completed.

Couldn’t get him to wake up on time on some days

No - They both treated each day like a school day. Got up sat at their desks and worked. I think being a new concept
it was easy. I do think they both like the Google Classroom idea and are embracing it. The hardest part about it is
they miss the sports and friends side of school life.
Yes because they are at home they tend to be relaxed and sometimes need a push to attend lessons

Yes, great challenges to make him work. Lack of discipline and maturity

Yes. Because until the shut-down he was by himself and there was no one at home to make sure he was working

No challenges at all. School work has to be done, takes priority - family rule!

None. Home life can be a bit distracting but easily managed.

No, but they seldom need motivation from me. I tried to keep life as normal as possible and just check in each day.

Yes- the school environment which strictly monitors the movement of children has made it very difficult for them to
learn to self-regulate when given freedom