Dudu Annah

Parents' strategies for home educating their children with Autism Spectrum Disorder during the COVID-19 period in Zimbabwe

By Majoko Tawanda

This study explored parents’strategies for home educating their children with Autism Spectrum Disorder(ASD) during the COVID-19 period in Harare Urban District in Zimbabwe. Embedded within internationalresearch findings on the subject, this qualitative study drew on a purposive sample of eight parents.Telephonic individual interviews, information sheets, and field notes were used to collect data. A constantcomparative approach of data organization with continuous adjustment was used throughout the analysis inorder to guarantee that codes captured the range of ideas of the parents. Parents committedly home edu-cated children with ASD in collaboration and discourse with their family members and peer parents.Complementary and supplementary roles of parents and family members in the home education of their chil-dren with ASD facilitated the transition of these children from school to home routine activities. Parents ofchildren with ASD fostered in these children an awareness of the new social reality of the COVID-19 periodand the safety precautions. This study offers insights regarding parents’strategies for home educating theirchildren with ASD during the COVID-19 period