‘Yeah … but no … but maybe’–the conflicts and ‘lessons’ of COVID-19 home-schooling

Abstract

This paper troubles the narrative around childhood as a ‘timeless zone’ (James and Prout 2015), which is particularly evident in the performative culture of education. Conversational-style interviews–and in some cases, re-interviews–were conducted with four UK Mums during their time of COVID-19 home-schooling. Subsequent interpretive analysis highlighted a paradoxical problem; in many ways, Mums’ new responsibilities to their children’s education conflicted with their caring responsibilities. I suggest that this illustrates ways in which Mums have unwittingly learned to prioritise hypothetical futures over subjective experiences. Their stories also demonstrate the importance of embracing human experience in an educational context.