PARENTS’ AND TEACHERS’ PERSPECTIVES ON ONLINE CLASS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: THEMATIC ANALYSIS

How do students’ parents and teachers react to online learning at primary schools during COVID-19 pandemic in Medan, Indonesia? The research aimed at discussing the perspectives of students’ parents and teachers concerning such online learning and used qualitative method to uncover their oral expressions. Online learning is considered the most appropriate method today to carry out teaching and learning process. Students’ parents and teachers faced new paradigm of online learning in which there are changes they should adapt to. Parents’ and teachers’ interview transcripts become the data in this research and were analyzed by thematic analysis as proposed by Braun and Clarke (2013). Students’ parents and primary school teachers become the research subjects. The results show that the subjects found obstacles specifically in technical and skill matters when they would take part in online class and the solution is to provide training for them so they can be accustomed with this learning method and to advance their knowledge of digital platform. Furthermore, building good and warm relationship among parents and teachers is necessary to increase their understanding on current condition of the COVID-19 pandemic in which online learning becomes the only method in which teachers are challenged to prepare their online materials well.