Teleworking Exhibit: Parenting While Teleworking
Individuals who had to juggle teleworking with childcare for their young children and online learning for their school-aged children faced significant challenges during the pandemic.
Mom's work from home time-lapse video reminds women everywhere: 'You're not alone'
Video of a woman working while caring for her children.
Kids Now Know to Ask "Are you in a meeting?"
"With so many people working from home children have learned to approach their parents and ask if they are in a meeting before saying anything else."
Constant interruptions
"I feel like it's not possible to get it all done, and then I think...not getting it doesn't feel like a choice I can make."
The Challenges of Caring for Children and Working at Home
"It is challenging and chaotic, but also it brings a lot of joys in watching kids develop."
COVID19 home office/kinder afternoon
Needing to combine working with childcare resulted in some innovative work/play spaces.
Parent/Worker/Teacher: Many parents had to combine teleworking with online teaching for their school-age children. Juggling these multiple roles left many exhausted and frustrated. The positive aspects were that parents were able to play a bigger role in their children's education and spend more time with them.
The pandemic gave parents the chance to work from home. Now they don’t want to give it up.
"Teleworking has provided advantages to parents - they are able to spend more time with their child during the day, not commuting has given them more time to devote to parenting, and the flexible schedule available in teleworking allows them to work around their children's schedules. Many parents don't want to give up their ability to telework after the pandemic."
When Grandma Becomes the Teacher
Some parents turned to extended family members to meet the demands of remote working and learning.
The Person I Can No Longer Be
"This pandemic has been a disaster for parents. We have two adults working from home, two remote learners, and a 3-year-old. Cut off from our usual support systems, many days we feel like we are hanging on by a thread."
Study reveals gender inequality in telecommuting
The COVID Impact Survey conducted by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago showed that mothers working from home spend more time on housework and childcare than fathers working from home. Mothers also report increased levels of anxiety, loneliness, and depression.
The Crushing Reality of Zoom School
"The pandemic balancing act for parents—choose two: your kids, your job, or your health—has always been difficult, but six months in it's in full collapse."