According to OECD (2021) last year, 1.5 billion students in 188 countries were locked out of their schools  and some were able to find their way around closed school doors, through alternative learning opportunities. Social distancing and hygiene practices imposed significant constraints on schools and required education systems to migrate to distance learning supporting regular interaction between the students and teachers, synchronously or asynchronously. This Case study aims to know the perceptions of students, parents and teachers concerning the impact of Covid 19 on teaching and learning process during the acquisition of knowledge and skills and academic results by students, as well as the support given by parents. 

Thus, two online questionnaires were applied to students, parents and teachers (n=468) in two key-moments: first in may 2020, second in april 2021. This Case study intends to: (i) determine teachers motivation in distance education; (ii) characterize the use and optimization of online platforms by students and teachers; (iii) describe the relationship between teaching and learning dynamics preferred by students and those used by teachers in distance education; (iv) describe the assessing process on distance learning - strengths and areas for improvement for students, teachers and parents. This study followed a mixed strategy using both quantitative and qualitative methods. Data collected from the considered sample was analysed using the software Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS v.26).

The results revealed seven major findings: (i) teachers are better prepared and thus more motivated for distance learning in 2021 compared to 2020; (ii) most teachers understand that their students are able to present themselves concentrated between 15 to 30 minutes, students, on the other hand, understand that they can stay focused for 30 to 45 minutes; (iii) on distance learning there is a before and there is an after - students understand that in distance learning they reinforced the use of OneNote (in digital notebooks, e-portfolios, paper submission), Forms (short evaluation moments in an interactive environment), and of course triggered the use of the online platform Microsoft Teams; (iv) comparing the strategies preferred by distance learning students with those actually used by teachers, students prefer reinforcing the implementation of project work strategies, as well as reinforcing gamified platforms such as Quizizz and Kahoot; (v) 76.6% of the surveyed parents understand, agreeing totally/partially, that the amount of tasks is adequate to their time of completion. (a decrease of 2% compared to 2020); (vi) in 2020, the distance learning process was characterized by students as being mostly broadly innovative, flexible; in 2021, students characterize it as tiring and anxiety-generating and (vii) in terms of inclusion and academic success, 30.7% of students fully/partially agree with the fact that distance learning can contribute to the improvement of school results and, on the other hand, 25% of teachers understand, disagreeing totally/partially or showing indifference, that distance learning does not allow to maintain measures that promote educational success.

OECD (2021), Using Digital Technologies for Early Education during COVID-19: OECD Report for the G20 2020 Education Working Group, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/fe8d68ad-en.