WITH the shift to the “Work From Home” scheme and online classes for most students and the working population, the line between work or school and home lives becomes blurry.
And this becomes a challenge for many.
Patricia, not her real name, shared she gets easily distracted at home given that her bed is just next to her study desk. Patricia is currently a senior high school student in Mati City, Davao Oriental.
“Dili nako productive kay usahay makalimot ko na naa pa diay miy klase, murag kwarto raman gihapon pud gud akong study desk bantog siguro (Sometimes, I become unproductive. I tend to forget that I have classes online to attend, maybe because my study desk is not separated from my bedroom),” she said.
According to Muse career coach Lynn Berger failing to fully disconnect work/school from home lives will negatively affect one’s work productivity. It will also take a toll on one’s home life causing anxiety and stress to some.
According to its website, The Muse is the “go-to destination for the next-gen workforce to research companies and careers.”
For college professor Derf Hanzel Maiz, who is also a father of four boys (three are school children), shared how establishing a designated study space for each of his sons helped them manage online classes.
His studying sons are presently in fourth and first grades.
“We have a customized study area for each kid so that they will feel that they are in an actual classroom. Previously, when we haven’t set up their study areas, they are easily distracted and it is really difficult to manage,” he said.
Having separate study spaces for his boys helps them concentrate more on the online sessions.
“Before, they tend to just play, disregarding the lessons but now they can concentrate more as they are now separated. Of course, they can play and interact with each other during breaks,” Maiz added.
He also shared that another advantage of setting up designated study spaces is easier organization of the children’s school works.
“Homeschooling is really difficult for parents who are used to traditional school set up. Especially my wife and I are both working from home. It helps that space for study and schooling will be placed inside the house,” he shared.
Meanwhile, for mother and college professor Channey, ensuring his son will get to have his own dedicated space to study and do synchronous classes with minimal distractions was her immediate response upon learning the shift to online setting.
“For me, it is very important to maintain a clear demarcation line between his time for school works and his time for personal things,” she said.
She also underscored that she conditioned herself to not distract his son with household chores even though his son is physically at home.
“Respecting his short breaks is very important for me too. Breaks should be respected at a time like this where school pressure can easily overlap with personal time,” the working mom shared.
Drawing the line between work and study space from your personal space at home can really do you more good than harm. However, achieving this setup might be challenging for others especially with limited space at home.
With Suntrust Properties Inc. (SPI) projects One Lakeshore Drive in Lanang, Davao City and Palm City in Tagum City, space is never a problem as the multi-awarded developer puts a premium on providing enough spaces for its clients important to achieve the home office and study area dreams of most people during the pandemic and beyond.