Solo Parents’ Involvement in the Literacy Instruction of their Children in Modular Distance Learning: Challenges and Opportunities

The world has been struck by an invisible enemy—the COVID-19. In effect, this has changed our lives radically without ever revealing itself directly. Moreover, the COVID-19 is a deadly pandemic that has affected every aspect of life, including education. Hence, thousands of school closures are implemented over the world. To this effect, the pandemic has definitely disrupted all lives, especially the lives of the students and their parents, in various ways. This qualitative study utilized the phenomenological case study approach, and the gathered data were analyzed to discover the themes and make the essence of parental involvement within the complexities of the changed situations. The study discovered themes on challenges such as (1) time constraints, (2) insufficient and limited knowledge, and (3) tough tasks. On the part of opportunities, the following themes were discovered: (1) bonding activity, (2) learning experience, and (3) strategic learning. From the themes that emerged, the following recommendations are offered to the Department of Education and its Schools. They may launch programs to address most specifically the challenges and problems mentioned above to ensure that quality education is provided even in the pandemic. Moreover, the Department of Education and its Schools may provide supplementary materials such as video or audio recordings of each and every module to further help the students learn the lessons on the module.


Introduction
The world has been struck by an invisible enemy-the COVID-19. In effect, this has changed our lives radically without ever revealing itself directly. Moreover, the COVID-19 is a deadly pandemic that has affected every aspect of life, including education, and because of our vulnerability to the virus, especially the young and the old, thousands of school closures are implemented over the world. To this effect, the pandemic has definitely disrupted all lives, especially the lives of the students and their parents, in various ways and as also mentioned by UNESCO (2020), who initially reported that more than a billion students across the world are affected by the COVID-19 crisis.
Since education is no longer held within the school, parents serve as partners of teachers in education. Parents play a vital role as home facilitators and their primary role in modular learning is to establish a connection and guide the child. Thus, this learning modality has passed on a big responsibility to the parents since, according to the Department of Education (DepEd), parents and guardians perform the various roles in modular distance learning. This crucial role of parents in implementing various remote learning modalities amid the COVID-19 crisis was also expressed by Manila Times (2020). The plan importantly underscores the role of parents in the implementation of its various learning delivery modalities (Pimentel-Tibon, 2020). Moreover, it reminds that early grade levels to need to be closely supervised by parents in the lessons. However, despite the efforts to assist parents in this daunting task of educating their children at home, struggles are inevitable (Garbe et al., 2020) and unsurprisingly, this learning modality posed challenges not only to the teachers but also to the parents. Dangle and Sumaoang (2020) found out that some parents do not have enough gadgets to be used by their child/children for online classes; some parents have difficulty understanding and answering the modules of their child/children; while some said that they do not have enough time to guide their kids due to work and other responsibilities. Moreover, they concluded that one of the main challenges was the parents' lack of knowledge to academically guide their child/children. Furthermore, Firmanto et al. (2020) stressed that learning carried out by parents at home was supervised and monitored by the teacher through online modes. However, several obstacles existed, such as limited online communication facilities, parents caring for other children, or two working parents. Because mothers carried out most home activities, learning became the second priority and was carried out during their free time. Thus, each parent was required to carry out learning and provide assistance to students at home. As a result, parents are also expected to master the material being taught, spending time with their children during the learning process, recording the children's activities, and then sending the children's learning outcomes in the form of videos and working papers. It is a real educational challenge for teachers, parents, and policymakers during the pandemic.
Therefore, the study aimed to explore and find the essence of the challenges faced by solo parents in the literacy instruction of their child/children. Moreover, this study will explore and find essence on the opportunities encountered by the solo parents in the literacy instruction of their children.

Literature Review
There is a body of literature that recognized parental involvement's critical role in students' educational development (Al-Mahrooqi et al., 2016; Niehaus & Adelson, 2014; Panferov, 2010) since as mentioned by Sanders and Sheldon (2009) and Henderson and Berla (1994) that all students are more likely to experience academic success if their home environment is supportive. In fact, Erdener and Knoeppel (2018) conveyed that even the parents accept that parental involvement is an important factor influencing children's educational success. Parents likewise believed their involvement had a significant influence on children's achievement (Al-Mahrooqi et al., 2016; Mahmoud, 2018) and thus, they have a positive attitude towards parental involvement (Kalayzi &Oz, 2018). Furthermore, growing studies showed and indicated the benefits of parental involvement in improving students' achievement (Epstein, 2009;Greenwood & Hickman, 1991;Henderson & Berla, 1994;Rumberger et al., 1990;Swap, 1993;Whitaker & Fiore, 2001) and an extensive research literature indicating that parental involvement is advantageous for children of all ages (Cox 2005;Desforges and Abouchaar 2003;Eccles and Harold 1993;Epstein 2001). The benefits of parental involvement can be seen in the study of Altschul (2011), when he concluded that there are positive effects of parental involvement. Furthermore, there are studies indicating that parental involvement improved students' achievement and showed benefits in other aspects. As revealed in the study of Kwatubana and Makhalemele (2015), parents involved in their children's education are not only a good thing because it improves academic performance but also because learners become more focused on their school work. Likewise, other research suggests that parental involvement affects the learning outcomes and students' social, emotional, psychological, and interactional improvement (Al-Mahrooqi, Denman, & Maamari, 2016). Also, Niehaus and Adelson (2014) emphasized that a higher level of parental involvement decreases anxiety, increasing students' achievement.
Parental involvement also showed advantageous even in language learning and development. As mentioned by Grolnick & Slowiaczek (1994) that elementary school children gain greater language. Moreover, previous research suggested that parental involvement greatly affects children's second language learning and development (Panferov, 2010;Xuesong, 2006). In addition, Üstünel (2009) mentioned that parents' activities as a part of parental involvement might directly or indirectly affect second language development. Fletcher and Reese (2005); Senechal and LeFevre (2002) mentioned that reading to children and supporting them for homework can help improve learning. Likewise, parents who read to their children, assist them with their homework, and provide tutoring using resources provided by teachers tend to do better in school than children whose parents do not assist them (Ball & Blachman, 1991;Izzo et al., 1999). Additionally, Sheldon (2009) stressed that children who come from reading oriented homes, where books are readily available to them and their parents are avid readers, tend to score higher on reading achievement tests than children from less reading-oriented homes. It also affects their literacy skills to have their parents read to them. Ergo, it is therefore not surprising that schoolwork and school achievement often play a central role in parent-child relationships and structure their daily lives (Ule et al, 2015).

Methodology
This study will employ a qualitative research method, specifically, the study will utilize the Phenomenological Case Study Design. Edmonds and Kennedy (2017) mentioned that researchers use the phenomenological approach when they are interested in exploring the meaning, composition, and core of the lived experience of specific phenomena. Moreover, the researcher explores the conscious experiences of an individual in an attempt to distil these experiences or get at their essence. This design is also often used with the phenomenological perspective and it is said that one of the appropriate methods to capture the experience, specifically lived experience, is phenomenology. Moreover, this design lends itself well to exploring the meaning of a lived experience of some phenomenon. This design provides the framework for an in-depth analysis of a finite number of participants. Researchers interested in exploring activities of an individual or small group, rather than the shared patterns of group behavior, should follow this design (Edmonds and Kennedy, 2017). Furthermore, this phenomenological approach, fused with the case study method, allows the researcher to come to understand or make sense of intricate human experiences and the essence and the underlying structure of a phenomenon (Merriam, 2009).
Furthermore, this study is situated in the municipality of Famy, Laguna. It is a 5th class municipality in the province of Laguna, the Philippines, where it lies in the north-eastern part of the province of Laguna via Manila East Road. It has a total land area of 5,306 hectares and is politically subdivided into 20 barangays. Moreover, Famy is bounded by the town of Real, Quezon, in the east, in the north by Santa Maria, in the west by Mabitac and Santa Maria, and in the south by Siniloan and Mabitac. Data gathering is crucial in research, as the data is meant to contribute to a better understanding of a theoretical framework (Bernard, 2002). It then becomes imperative that selecting the manner of obtaining data and from whom the data will be acquired be done with sound judgment, especially since no amount of analysis can make up for improperly collected data (Bernard et al., 1986). The participants were selected using the purposive sampling technique as supported by Creswell (2009) that the idea behind qualitative research is to purposefully select participants that will best help the researcher understand the problem and the research question. Furthermore, the purposive sampling technique, also called judgment sampling, is the deliberate choice of the researcher due to the qualities the informant possesses. It is a non-random technique that does not need underlying theories or a set number of informants. Simply put, the researcher decides what needs to be known and sets out to find people who can and are willing to provide the information by virtue of knowledge or experience (Bernard 2002). Thus, the study participants were four (4) solo parents whose child or children are in the early elementary grades or those in grades 1 to 3. This number of research participants is pursuant to the recommendation made by Boyd (2001) when he regards two to 10 participants or research subjects as sufficient to reach saturation and that the concept of saturation is the most important factor to think about when mulling over sample size decisions in qualitative research (Mason, 2010). Moreover, they must be the ones conducting the literacy instruction to their child or children. Moreover, they were selected using the definition of solo parents stipulated and enshrined in the Section 3 of Solo Parent's Welfare Act or Republic Act 8972 which states that they are those any individual who falls under in any of the following categories, namely: (a) a woman who gives birth as a result of rape and other crimes against chastity even without a final conviction of the offender, provided that mother keeps and raises the child; (b) parent left solo or alone with the responsibility of parenthood due to the enumerated circumstances; (c) unmarried mother/father who has preferred to keep and rear her/his child/children instead of having others care for them or give them up to a welfare institution; (d) any other person who solely provides parental care and support to a child or children; (e) any family member who assumes the responsibility of the head of the family as a result of the death, abandonment, disappearance or prolonged absence of the parents or solo parent. Furthermore, the participants' profile and background information are as follows: the first participant is Clarissa. She is a 31-yearold mother with one child studying in grade 3 and has been a solo parent for 9 years. While the second participant is Mariah, she is a 36-year-old mother with one child studying in grade 2 and has been a solo parent for 5 years. The third participant is Mylene, she is a 26-year-old mother with one child studying in grade 1 and has been a solo parent for 6 years. The fourth and last participant is Katy, she is a 34-year-old mother with one child studying in grade 1 and has been a solo parent for 5 years. Moreover, all of the participants are separated and with only one child.
In addition, the data were gathered through an unstructured or informal interview. Unstructured interviews are informal conversational interviews in which respondents may not even know they are being interviewed (Patton, 2002). Furthermore, unstructured interviews do not rely on a list of predetermined questions. Instead, interviewers adopt what Patton refers to as a "go with the flow" conversation style defined by their role in the field setting. The data gathering procedure commenced with getting the consent of all the participants to be involved in the research study and were assured that the data that will be gathered will be treated with the utmost confidentiality and will only be used for research. Moreover, the participants' identities will never be revealed to anyone. After getting the consent and providing assurances to the participants, an informal or unstructured interview was done for 15 minutes to 20 minutes. This type of interview allows the interviewer to discuss the topics of interest and follow all leads that emerge during the discussion (Johnson and Christensen, 2017). Moreover, the schedules of the interviews depended on the availability of the participants. With the permission of the participants, the interview was done through face-to-face mode as the participants cannot accommodate the interviews virtually. In relation, the researcher and the participants followed all health protocols such as wearing facemasks and face shields, observing social distancing and frequent sanitizing of the hands and equipment used in the interviews. Furthermore, the gathered data or the interview was then transcribed, coded, and then analyzed to get themes for the participants' challenges and opportunities.
Moreover, the analysis of data will be analyzed through thematic analysis. This data analysis method of analyzing qualitative data is usually applied to a set of texts, such as interview transcripts. Furthermore, this is where the researcher closely examines the data to identify common themes -topics, ideas and patterns of meaning that come up repeatedly. This type of qualitative data analysis involves six steps: (1) Familiarization with the data. This phase involves reading and re-reading the data to become immersed and intimately familiar with its content. (2) Coding, this phase involves generating succinct labels that identify important data features that might be relevant to answering the research question. It involves coding the entire dataset, and after that, collating all the codes and all relevant data extracts together for later stages of analysis. (3) Generating initial themes, this phase involves examining the codes and collated data to identify significant broader patterns of meaning (potential themes). It then involves collating data relevant to each candidate theme so that you can work with the data and review the viability of each candidate theme. (4) Reviewing themes, this phase involves checking the candidate themes against the dataset to determine that they tell a convincing story of the data and one that answers the research question. In this phase, themes are typically refined, which sometimes involves splitting, combining, or discarding them. In this thematic analysis approach, themes are defined as a pattern of shared meaning underpinned by a central concept or idea. (5) Defining and naming themes, this phase involves developing a detailed analysis of each theme, working out the scope and focus of each theme, determining the 'story' of each. It also involves deciding on an informative name for each theme. Furthermore, the study scrupulously and strictly observed the following ethical considerations, such as first and foremost, informed consent. The researcher obtained the permission of the participants to take part in the research study. Moreover, the participants were assured that all gathered information would be treated with the utmost confidentiality and they were also assured that their identities would be protected as the researcher will use codenames to refer to them. Furthermore, since the interviews were face-to-face, the researcher made sure that all health protocols such as wearing facemasks and face shields, observing social distancing and frequent sanitizing of the hands and equipment used in the conduct of the interviews. Thus, the conduct of interviews upheld the principles of consent and non-maleficence. This simply holds that there is an obligation not to inflict harm on others (Jahn, 2011).

Results and Discussion
The gathered data are presented here together with the analysis and interpretation based on the stated objectives of the study. These include the themes that emerged in the interviews about the challenges faced and opportunities encountered by the participants in the conduct of literacy instruction during the implementation of modular distance learning where parents served as the guides and facilitators of the pupils as brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Challenges Faced by the Solo Parents in the Conduct of Literacy Instruction to their Children
The recurring themes that emerged from the responses of the participants towards the challenges in literacy instruction were (1) time constraints, (2) insufficient and limited knowledge, and (3) tough tasks.

Theme 1: Time Constraints
All four participants or key informants mentioned and expressed the problem or dilemma of time constraints in their child's literacy instruction because of work and other responsibilities. As Mariah stressed that work was really one of the reasons for the limited interaction with the child. This she said:

"Kasi mas madami nga po yung oras ko sa trabaho kaysa po sa loob ng bahay" (Because of the fact that my time for work is more than the time of me inside the house.)
Katy also mentioned that the allotted time for work is also now used to conduct the literacy instruction to her child. Further, she mentioned that sometimes household chores and other responsibilities limit her to conduct literacy instruction. As she said that: "Kasi syempre po napaghahati-hati yung oras kahit may trabaho ka kailangan mo siyang turuan talaga kasi walang ibang mag gu-guide sa kanya kung hindi ako" (Definitely, the time is divided even in work because you really have to teach the child since no other person will guide him. Clarrisa further explained that because it was difficult, especially that it was the first time she had seen the module, she needed to read and understand it first because she did not know it entirely. She narrated that: "Maraming pagkakataon na mahirap pala dahil unang-una bago ko lang nakikita yung mga module. Hindi ko kabisado ang nilalaman kaya hirap akong magturo sa aking anak kung anong kinakailangan basahin ko pa." (Many times, it was difficult, first of all, because it was the first time I had seen the module. I do not know it entirely and I needed to read the modules that is why it was difficult to conduct literacy instruction to my child)

Theme 3: Tough Task
The participants or the key informants all agree that teaching their children how to read and write or conduct literacy instruction is a difficult and tough task. Mariah and Mylene plainly stated that it is indeed hard and difficult to do. Mariah stated: "Ang hirap magturo sir, e." (It is difficult to teach, sir) This is further agreed on by Mylene. As she mentioned that: "Kasi mahirap din po magturo ng pagbasa." (Because it is difficult to teach reading) Katy further explained that conducting literacy instruction to their children is difficult because of the fact that every child has a unique characteristic or attitude. She expressed that: Lahat po naman ng bata may ugali po, e. Kaya po yun po ang mahirap minsan sa pagtuturo.

(Every child has unique characteristics and attitude. And that is why it is difficult to teach them)
Moreover, Clarissa also mentioned that literacy instruction is hard to do since she is not a teacher. This would mean that it is particularly hard due to the fact that these solo parents did not have any formal education on how to teach literacy to their children. She emphasized that: "…mahihirapan ka dahil ikaw lang ang magtuturo o lalo na't hindi ka naman magulang na teacher, hindi ka guro, mahihirapan ka. Parang mahirap sa isang magulang na magturo ng pagbasa at pagsulat." (..you will find it difficult because you are the only one teaching and most especially that the parents are not teachers. It is quite difficult for parents to teach the children how to read and write) These themes that emerged from the present study are further supported by Palma (2021) when he found out that many parents or guardians need to divide their time for work and their students' learning and education. Furthermore, not all parents or guardians graduated from college or received formal training in teaching. As also stressed by Firmanto (2020), learning became the second priority and was carried out during their free time. Moreover, Luaña (2021) found out that parents indeed faced challenges on the instruction toward their children because of time constraints due to work and household chores. Likewise, a study by Dangle and Sumaoang (2020) on the implementation of modular distance learning in the Philippines revealed that the parents' lack of knowledge to academically guide their child/children is one of the main challenges the implementation brings of such learning modality.

Opportunities Encountered by the Solo Parents in the Conduct of Literacy Instruction to their Children
The recurring themes that emerged from the responses of the participants towards the opportunities in literacy instruction were (1) bonding activity, (2) learning experience, and (3) strategic learning.

Theme 1: Bonding Activity
All of the participants or key informants asserted that conducting literacy instruction to their children served as a bonding activity, which led them to further know and understand the strengths and weaknesses of their children. This can be recounted in the statement of Mariah when she mentioned that: "Edi yun po ang pinaka naging bonding na po namin mag-ina." (Literacy instruction became our bonding activity) Mylene and Katy also mentioned that literacy instruction became a bonding activity and made the relationship closer. "Mas naging ano siya sa akin, naging malapit. Parang naging mas close din naman." (My child became closer to me) "Nagkaroon po kami ng bonding ng anak ko." (I had bonding activity with my child) Clarissa further explained that doing literacy instruction, though is hard, positively impacted her relationship with her child since it made her realize the strengths and weaknesses of her child. She expressed that: "

Theme 3: Strategic Learning
As the ones providing the literacy interaction, the participants also learned to strategize how they will be able to motivate their children to learn the lesson on the modules. The participants utilized different techniques in order to maximize the learning of their children. Mariah, for one, makes a schedule for the literacy instruction and makes a deal with her child to encourage her to study the lessons. As she recounted: "Ang ginagawa ko po may iskedyul. Tapos siyempre di maiiwasan po yung sasabihin nila 'Mommy, pagkatapos magbasa, pahiram ng cellphone, ha?' gano'n. May mga ganung kundisyon. So kung yun po yung gusto ng bata pagbibigyan mo para pagbigyan din yung gusto nila." (What I do is there is a schedule. And there are times that my child would say, 'Mommy, please let me borrow the cellphone after reading this. There are requests like that. So, you have to grant the request so that my child would also be encouraged to learn the lessons) Mylene also makes a deal with her child in order to encourage and push the child to read and study the lessons well to get a perfect score on the activities. This she recounted: " These recurring themes that emerged can also be seen in Firmanto et al. (2020) when they stressed that parents' involvement in daily learning and positive parenting at home are a major contributor to the children's learning. Moreover, as Cahapay (2021) noted, one of the positive consequences of remote learning at home is that parents have become more involved with their children's education; thus, the relationships of the parents and children are closer than before. Furthermore, Bayod et al. (2021) also found out that parents shared that despite a lot of struggles and difficulties, they discovered something positive-they learned together with their children in modular distance learning.

Conclusion and Recommendation
The pandemic struck and everything seemed to be in disarray and chaos. However, we, humans, have always find ways to cope with whatever problem or dilemma is presented in front of us. True enough, the education sector such as the Department of Education (DepEd), quickly thought of ways and strategies in order for the learning of the students to continue even in at the height of the pandemic. Thus, the modular distance learning (MDL) is born. The conceptualization and the implementation of this learning modality brought out many things to the concerned-the parents and their child. The aim of the study is to explore and look into the challenges and opportunities brought about by the implementation of the said learning modality specifically on the conduct of literacy instruction by parents towards their children. It is then found out that parents experienced and faced several problems such as time constraints in conducting the literacy instruction because of work and other responsibilities of the parents such as household chores. Moreover, the parents also mentioned the insufficient knowledge to academically support, guide, and teach their children. Furthermore, the parents also found teaching or conducting literacy instruction as tedious and a tough task since they also have other responsibilities, especially because they were not formally trained to conduct instruction towards their child. Nevertheless, the parents also saw the significance and positive things in the conduct of literacy instruction because, in a way, this became their bonding activity, which made them further understand their children's personality and led them to have a closer relationship with their children. Moreover, in the conduct of literacy instruction, parents also learn from the modules and from their children. Lastly, parents learned to strategize by making deals, employing a reward system, and utilizing teaching strategies to maximise their children's learning further.
From the themes that emerged, the recommendation is offered to the Department of Education, and its Schools may launch programs to address the challenges and problems mentioned above to ensure that quality education is provided even in the pandemic. Moreover, the Department of Education and its Schools may provide supplementary materials such as video or audio recordings of each and every module to help further the students learn the lessons on the module.