Distance Learning during COVID‑19 School Closures: Parent Survey 2020

The dataset contains responses to a survey conducted among parents of comprehensive school and upper secondary school students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The survey covered themes such as schooling, teaching, and learning. The questionnaire could be completed in either Finnish or English. The data were collected as part of the broader Distance Learning (DisLe) research project. First, parents were asked to indicate the school level and grade of the child from whose perspective they were completing the questionnaire. The parents then evaluated statements related to schooling under the exceptional circumstances, including satisfaction with distance learning, the organisation of distance learning, their child's experiences of distance learning, and communication between teachers and the home. Next, parents assessed the suitability of distance learning for different school subjects and compared various aspects of distance learning with teaching under normal circumstances. They were then asked what kinds of devices and learning platforms their children used for studying and submitting assignments and how much parental support was needed in information technology-related matters. Finally, the survey examined whether the child had received support during distance learning, for example from a school counsellor or psychologist, whether parents had received information about where to seek help for school-related challenges, and whether parents had discussed school with their children more than usual at home. Background variables include the respondent's role in relation to the student, the respondent's child's school level and grade, school size, the child's primary mode of study, the language spoken at home, the number of underage children in the household, the respondent's educational background, the respondent's year of birth, and whether the respondent had completed comprehensive school in Finland.