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15
Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
Introduction
The world is currently witnessing a great scientic and technological revolution. Its inuence has
reected on various aspects of human life and can be particularly felt in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The changes brought about by the pandemic in the area of education were sudden and unexpected. The
COVID-19 pandemic led to the closing of schools all around the world and transformed the existing ways
of learning and teaching. Suddenly, distance learning was introduced. The pandemic emphasized the
importance of online learning, which became an acceptable solution to a problem created when face-to-
face teaching was brought to a halt. There had been no time to prepare for such a change. The learning
and teaching environment underwent fundamental changes and had an impact on all stakeholders in the
education process. Pokhrel and Chhetri (2021) point out that it was the biggest disturbance in the history
of education. A great number of the main stakeholders in the education process, students and teachers,
found themselves involved in online learning for the rst time. In normal circumstances, such sudden and
massive changes would call for additional resources, training, planned strategies and adaptability of all
stakeholders. However, as it was impossible to provide them, both students and teachers were forced to
cope with the new situation as best they could. Also, they came across various challenges and obstacles
in the process (Salihagic and Akay, 2022). According to Blahušiaková, Mokošová, and Šoltés (2021)
the primary goal of teachers was to ensure quality teaching at the same level as during the traditional
attendance form of teaching. Teachers had to overcome the obstacles relating to technology, nd new
ways to design and adjust their teaching activities, combine pedagogy and technology, etc. (Son, 2018).
The transition from traditional teaching to virtual teaching for all students, at all education levels,
is a phenomenon which had never been seen before. That is why it was important to examine students’
perceptions of the changes in education introduced due to safety measures in order to minimize the
Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life
Satisfaction Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic
Tomislava Vidić
1*
, Marina Đuranović
1
, Irena Klasnić
1
1
University of Zagreb, Faculty of Teacher Education, Croatia
e-mail: tomislava.vidic@ufzg.hr; marina.duranovic@ufzg.hr; irena.klasnic@ufzg.hr
Abstract: In an attempt to examine the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic affected the lives of primary school
students, a longitudinal study was conducted focused on students’ school satisfaction and life satisfaction, and their perception
of the support provided by their teachers. The study was conducted in two waves, within the period of two years – the rst one
before the pandemic, and the second one upon its end, that is, when the students returned to classes in school. The study
encompassed 548 students in total, attending third to eighth grades of primary school in the Republic of Croatia. 267 students
participated in both waves of the study. The quantitative approach was applied. The results revealed statistically signicant
differences in students’ perception of teacher support, and the level of their school satisfaction and life satisfaction. Students
seem to have been more satised with school, life and teacher support before the pandemic. An additional analysis of the
differences between generations of students (2019 and 2021) was conducted. Although the younger generation seem to give
a lower rating to all the examined variables, in comparison to the generation of 2019, the results reveal statistically signicant
differences only in life satisfaction (grades 4, 5 and 7) and teacher support (grades 5 and 6). The limitations of the study, as
well as implications for future research and educational practice are discussed.
Keywords: COVID–19; life satisfaction; school satisfaction; teacher support.
Original scientic paper
Received: March, 01.20223
Revised: March, 21.2023.
Accepted: April, 05.2023.
UDK:
37.064.2-057.874(497.5)”2019/2021”
37.015.3-057.874(497.5)”2019/2021”
10.23947/2334-8496-2023-11-1-15-25
© 2023 by the authors. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the
Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
*
Corresponding author: tomislava.vidic@ufzg.hr
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Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
negative effects of the pandemic. Students pointed out that negative characteristics of online learning
for them included a lack of personal communication and self-condence for asking questions when they
did not understand something and when they needed clarication. Furthermore, they also mentioned
difculties in focusing on studying, lack of motivation for studying, technical problems, not understanding
the tasks they were supposed to do, and writing exams. In general, students did not have a positive attitude
to online teaching and were dissatised with it because they were faced with numerous challenges. The
only positive thing they mentioned was being at home and feeling safe from catching a virus (Salihagic
and Akay, 2022). Although the pandemic has not ofcially ended yet, its end is near (World Health
Organization [WHO], 2021) and we are going back to the new normal, so we are using the phrase after
the pandemic in the title of this paper as well.
During the pandemic in Croatia, the teaching process was conducted by applying one of the
three possible models, depending on the epidemiological situation: A model – the teaching process was
conducted in school; B model – a combination of in-school and online teaching, and C model – online
teaching. Due to these three models, students in Croatia were able to have online lessons less frequently.
The Croatian model, as an example of good practice, was presented at the WHO meeting on education
in the time of the pandemic (WHO, 2021). In March 2020, the teaching process in Croatia was being
conducted online, at all levels of education. Over time, the teaching process was slowly going back to its
traditional form – face-to-face. At rst, the youngest students in primary schools went back to face-to-face
teaching, followed by older students. Occasionally, in case there were students who had been infected by
the corona virus, or those who had been in close contact with the infected people, whole classes would
go back to the virtual teaching environment for a certain period of time. In September 2021, the COVID-19
measures were relaxed and only individual students were required to self-isolate, instead of entire classes
(Hrvatski zavod za javno zdravstvo [HZJZ], 2021).
Teacher support
Teacher support may be dened as a student’s perception of care, help, feedback and advice
provided by the teacher (Guess and McCane-Bowling, 2016). Alder (2002) lists teachers’ characteristics
that students perceive as caring and supportive. These teachers know their students well, provide
personalized leadership for their students, teach them to understand the content, are academically helpful,
and hold high expectations for behaviour and achievement. According to Skinner et al. (2008), teacher
support includes three dimensions: autonomy support, structure and involvement. Autonomy support is
teacher’s provision of choice, relevance, or respect to students. Structure implies clear expectations, while
involvement encompasses warmth, affection and understanding. Teacher support is positively related to
a sense of belonging (Wang and Eccles, 2012), satisfaction with school (Buehler et al., 2015; Danielsen
et al., 2009), and engagement in school (Buehler et al., 2015; Reyes et al., 2012). Supportive teachers
create opportunities in the classroom which enable students’ holistic growth and development, and help
them experience the learning process in a positive way. Such experiences and encouraging feedback
provided by teachers motivate students to be more engaged in work in school (Buehler et al., 2015).
Wang et al. (2010) point out that students who feel teacher support tend to exhibit problem behaviour less
frequently.
Students’ School Satisfaction
Students’ rst associations with school include mainly studying, teaching, learning outcomes, and
marks. However, school is much more than that. It is a place where students (and teachers) live and it
should, besides providing students with opportunities to gain new knowledge and skills and enabling their
personal growth and development, also provide them with a feeling of satisfaction and success. School
satisfaction is a very important, but insufciently researched phenomenon, which is related to students’
well-being in school (Epstein and McPartland, 1976). Nowadays, school satisfaction is considered the
fundamental area for understanding the quality of students’ lives (Suldo, Bateman and Gelley, 2014).
Baker (1998) denes school satisfaction as a student’s subjective cognitive evaluation of the quality
of school life. Since it is a subjective construct, school satisfaction accounts for the individual differences
in students’ perceptions (Huebner, 1991a). Baker (1998) states that school satisfaction is inuenced by
numerous factors from students’ environment and individual factors. The former include ethical and caring
school environment, stress and family environment. It is expected that children’s perception of caring
and supportive school environment, including good and quality interpersonal relationships, will have a
positive impact on children’s school satisfaction. If children evaluate school as stressful environment, it
will have a negative impact on their school satisfaction. The sources of stress most frequently associated
with school are: academic requirements, interaction with teachers and interaction with peers (Carson and
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Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
Bittner, 1994). The quality of a child’s family life is the most important environment factor that will probably
inuence school satisfaction. The most frequent individual factors that have an impact on children’s school
satisfaction are psychological distress and academic self-perception (Baker, 1998).
A high level of school satisfaction inuences a student’s acceptance of educational values and
his/her motivation, and it is related to academic success as well (Danielsen et al., 2011; Goodenow and
Grady, 1993). On the other hand, it has been proved that a low level of school satisfaction is related to
students’ risky behaviour and substance abuse (Vogel et al., 2015).
Life satisfaction
The experiences that children and young people have in school, be they positive or negative, will
have an impact on the quality of their lives and their psychological well-being (Hui and Sun, 2010). One
of the components of subjective well-being is life satisfaction, that is, an individual’s evaluation of how
satised he or she is with the quality of their own life (Pavot et al., 1991). Life satisfaction can be studied
in terms of evaluation of life as a whole and/or in terms of evaluation of specic life domains (e.g. family,
school) (Seligson, Huebner and Valois, 2003). Park, Peterson and Seligman (2004) point out that hope,
as a character strength, is related to life satisfaction in adults, while Gilman and Huebner (2006) claim it
is related to life satisfaction in young people as well.
Studies on life satisfaction in children and young people have been conducted recently, taking
into consideration the introduction of measures intended to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Magson et al. (2021) detected a signicant decrease in the life satisfaction level in adolescents, following
the introduction of safety measures at the national level due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They also
determined differences in terms of gender and explained that girls exhibited a greater decrease in life
satisfaction level than boys. Furthermore, according to the ndings of a longitudinal study conducted
by Steinmayr, Paschke and Wirthwein (2022) on a sample of 425 primary school students during the
COVID-19 pandemic, there was a decrease in positive behaviour exhibited by children, as well as lower
levels of family life satisfaction, general life satisfaction and satisfaction with peers.
The aim of the research
The aim of this study was to examine how primary school students perceive teacher support and
how satised they are with school and their life. As the rst wave of the study was carried out in 2019
(before the COVID-19 pandemic), and the second wave was conducted when students returned to schools
in 2021 (after the COVID-19 pandemic), the rst task in the study was to check if there were any changes
in students’ perceptions of teacher support, school satisfaction and life satisfaction. Between these two
points in time the teaching process was sometimes conducted online, while before the beginning of the
pandemic and after the study had been carried out the teaching process was conducted in the face-to-face
format. An additional analysis was carried out to determine if there were differences in the perceptions
of the examined variables in terms of the generation of students. It was assumed that, due to online
teaching, students perceived a lower level of teacher support. It was also assumed that online teaching
and lockdown had left their marks on students’ school and life satisfaction.
This study aims to answer the following three questions:
1. Are there differences in students’ perceptions of teacher support, school satisfaction and life
satisfaction before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in the entire sample of the respondents?
2. Are there differences at a class level in students’ perceptions of teacher support, school satisfaction
and life satisfaction before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in the respondents who participated in both
waves of the study?
3. Are there differences in students’ perceptions of teacher support, school satisfaction and life
satisfaction before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of the generation to which students belong?
Materials and Methods
Participants and procedures
The sample comprised primary school students in Zagreb, the Republic of Croatia. Five hundred
and forty eight students attending grades 3 – 8 of primary school participated in the study. Since primary
school in the Croatian education system includes students from rst (aged 6-7 years) to eighth grade
(aged 13-14 years), the second wave of the study could not include the students who had attended
grades 7 and 8 during the rst wave of the study. Two hundred and sixty seven respondents in total took
part in both waves of the study, 146 respondents took part only in the rst wave (grades 7 and 8), while
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Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
135 respondents took part only in the second wave (grades 3 and 4). In relation to the total number of
students in the school, the rst wave included 82.6% (n1 = 413), and the second wave 77.75% (n2 =
402) of students. The total number of the respondents included 47.7% of male and 52.3% of female
participants. A detailed analysis of the sample is shown in Table 1.
Table 1
The sample
Note: * respondents who took part in both waves
The study was conducted in line with the provisions of the Ethical Code for Research with Children.
Prior to the study, a written parental consent for children’s participation in the study had been obtained. As
the participants are children attending lower grades of primary school, and in order to secure their anonymity
and the protection of their data, the data in the rst wave of the study were completely anonymous and
did not involve any personal information based on which students could be identied. The only data that
were collected were those on students’ gender, age and grade. The rst point of measurement was in
2019, before the pandemic broke out. Although the study was conducted anonymously, it was known
who the participants were, as the written parental consent had been obtained prior to the study. However,
the analyses were conducted only at the individual class level. In 2021 it was decided to repeat the
measurement to examine the differences in students’ school satisfaction and life satisfaction levels and
the received teacher support, regarding the changes caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the changes
in students’ lives and organization of the teaching process. In the second wave, written parental consent
for participation of third- and fourth-grade students in the study was required again. For students attending
grades 5, 6, 7 and 8, written parental consent was required only from those parents whose children had
participated in the rst wave of the study.
Measurements
Teacher support – to measure teacher support, one dimension of The Child and Adolescent Social
Support Scale (CASSS; Malecki and Demaray, 2002; Malecki, Demaray and Elliott, 2014) was used. The
Teacher Support Dimension originally contained 12 items. However, in this study, 5 items were used (e.g.
My teachers tells me I did a good job when I’ve done something well). The calculated reliability coefcients
were α = .832 (Time 1) and α = .830 (Time 2).
School satisfaction – to measure students’ school satisfaction, one dimension of The Multidimensional
Students’ Life Satisfaction Scale (MSLSS; Huebner, 2011) was used, containing eight items (e.g. I like
being in school). The calculated reliability coefcients were α = .841 (Time 1) and α = .838 (Time 2).
Life satisfaction – to measure students’ life satisfaction, a one-dimensional Student’s Life Satisfaction
Scale (SLSS; Huebner, 1991b) was used. It contains nine items (e.g. I like the way things are going for
me). The calculated reliability coefcients were α = .849 (Time 1) and α = .850 (Time 2).
Students evaluated all items on a 5-point scale (1 – Strongly disagree; 2 – Disagree; 3 – Neither
agree nor disagree; 4 – Agree; 5 –Strongly agree).
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Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
Results
In order to provide answers to the questions posed in the study, the mean values and standard
deviations were calculated for each of the examined variables in the rst (n1 = 413) and the second wave
(n2 = 402) of the study. The obtained results are presented in Table 2.
Table 2
Descriptive statistic for variables at Time 1 and Time 2
Note: n1 = 413; n2 = 402
The results indicate that students were more satised with school and life and felt more teacher
support before the pandemic. It should be pointed out that these data present the results obtained for the
entire study sample.
In order to determine if there are differences in the perceptions before and after the COVID-19
pandemic, a t-test for dependent samples was performed on the data of those respondents who took part
in both waves of the study. Since the data on students had not been matched, the t-test was performed
at a class level (n = 15). Before the t-test, the normality of distributions was tested, indicating that the
distributions for school satisfaction (z = .131; p > .01), life satisfaction (z = .186; p > .01) and teacher
support (z = .173; p > .01) in 15 classes were not statistically signicantly different from the normal
distribution, so the application of t-test for dependent samples was justied. The results obtained by t-test
are shown in Table 3.
Table 3
Differences in students’ perception of teacher support, school satisfaction and life satisfaction
before and after the COVID-19 pandemic
Note: T1 – time of the rst measurement; T2 – time of the second measurement, N = 267; 15 classes
The results conrm statistically signicant differences in the perceptions of teacher support,
school satisfaction and life satisfaction. The obtained effect size, Cohen d, points to a great difference in
perceptions, with all values signicantly higher before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
An additional analysis was carried out to detect possible differences in students’ perceptions relating
to the generation they belong to. In order to determine if there are differences between generations, the
sets of data were compared – for example the data of third-grade students in 2019 with the results of
other third-grade students in 2021. The t-test was performed for each grade respectively. Prior to that,
the normalities of distributions (N = 792) were tested and it was revealed that distributions for school
satisfaction (z = .046; p < .01), life satisfaction (z = .126; p < .01) and teacher support (z = .133; p < .01)
showed statistically signicant differences in comparison with the normal distribution. Still, since indices
of skewness (.295 – .956) and kurtosis (.028 – .359) were small, and the number of the respondents was
large enough, it was justied to use the parametric data analysis (Hair et al., 2010). The results of the
t-test are shown in Table 4.
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Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
Table 4
Differences in students’ perceptions of teacher support, school satisfaction and life satisfaction in
terms of the generation students belong to
Note: T1 – time of the rst measurement; T2 – time of the second measurement
The differences in generations have shown that there were no statistically signicant differences
in the third and eighth grade in 2019 and 2021. In the group of students attending the fourth, fth and
seventh grade, the life satisfaction level was lower in 2021 in comparison with 2019. Also, students in the
fth and sixth grade perceived a lower level of teacher support in comparison with the year 2019. Still, all
the identied differences have a moderate effect (Cohen d < 0.5).
Discussions
The aim of the present study was to investigate how primary school students perceive teacher
support and how satised they are with their school and lives before and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The current data have shown that students feel that teacher support was greater before than after
the pandemic. Among all three examined variables, at both time points, the teacher support variable was
ranked highest, but at the same time, the difference in the perceived teacher support before and after the
pandemic was the biggest. The analysis of students’ results at a grade level has shown that students felt
teacher support was statistically signicantly lower two years later.
A possible explanation for such results could be found in the fact that, since students are at a
relatively young age (8-9 and 13-14 years old), the help they expected to get from their teacher during
the pandemic and occasional online lessons was not sufcient. The majority of students probably did
not have the necessary knowledge and sufciently developed skills, especially the digital skills, which
were of utmost importance for participation in online classes and for independent work. That is why they
expected more care, attention, time and understanding from their teachers, which they, according to their
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21
Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
own assessment, did not receive.
Examining the differences by generations, it is evident that students in fth and sixth grade perceived
lower teacher support after the pandemic, while these differences were not evident in other generations.
This might be due to the fact that students in Croatia have a classroom teacher in the rst four grades
of primary school, who spends several hours with them every day. In fth grade, the classroom teacher
is replaced by subject teachers. The transition to a new and different form of teaching in which subject
teachers do not spend so much time with their students, do not know them well, and have not established
a good rapport with them could have resulted in the fact that students perceived a lower level of teacher
support. Furthermore, the teaching process during the pandemic was occasionally conducted via ICT
tools, which might have made interaction and communication more difcult.
The importance of teacher support for students is great. Klem and Connell (2004) state that both
students and teachers believe that teacher support is important for student engagement. Havik and
Westergård (2020) point out that when students have caring teachers who encourage their development,
they are more likely to work harder in class and be more engaged in work. Mali and Lin (2021) carried out
research on the sample of undergraduate students in the UK, at two time points, during the second wave
of the pandemic. The results revealed that students felt that teacher support was greater when lessons
were conducted face-to-face (Mali and Lim, 2021). Examining students’ perceptions of online learning
before and after transition to online lessons due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Lemay, Bazelais and Doleck
(2021) found that teachers should not only take into consideration the technical aspects, but also social
and affective dimensions of support for students.
Although the use of computers or other artefacts in education is not a new issue, teaching in
a virtual environment posed a problem for some teachers. Due to difculties they had in mastering
the usage of digital technology and tools, and transition to online teaching, some teachers might have
provided less support for their students. These teachers were probably more focused on developing their
own competencies, so they found it difcult to provide support to their students. It is very likely, as this
study includes the initial stage of the pandemic, when the entire teaching process was transferred into
a virtual environment in an extremely short time period. There was no time for teachers to prepare well
for achieving the outcomes set in the curricula. Numerous studies point out that teachers experienced
a great time pressure and increased volume of workload during the pandemic (van der Spoel et al.,
2020), exhaustion (Sokal, Trudel and Babb, 2020) and stress (Klapproth et al., 2020). In order to use
distance learning as a normal way of work, teachers should be provided with training and guidelines
for development of their expertise in using the learning and teaching technology (Spiteri and Chang
Rundgren, 2020), as well as sufcient resources, time and support (Stone and Springer, 2019).
According to the obtained results, among all the examined variables, students seem to be least
satised with school, both before and after the pandemic. Furthermore, their school satisfaction decreased
during the pandemic, making a statistically signicant difference. Teacher support is one of the signicant
predictors of general school satisfaction (Bubić and Goreta, 2015). Since students perceive a lower level
of teacher support over time, it is not surprising that school satisfaction is also lower. Baker et al. (2003)
also point out that low school satisfaction can be a result of students’ perception of insufcient social
support from classmates and teachers.
Differences between generations of students in school satisfaction were not found, as students
were moderately satised with schools during measurements at both time points. Still, it is evident that
there is a decreasing level of school satisfaction as students get older. Older students seem to be less
satised with school, which is in line with other studies carried out in primary schools in Croatia (Perić,
2010; Koludrović and Radnić, 2013; Nikčević-Milković, Jerković and Biljan, 2014). During the course of
education, requirements from students become more complex and demanding, and expectations become
higher. Therefore, it is possible that older students tend to exhibit greater dissatisfaction.
Kuo et al. (2014) point out that interaction is a critical factor of student satisfaction. During the
pandemic and online teaching, the interaction between teachers and students, and among students
themselves, was reduced and made difcult, which affected the results we obtained in our study through
reduced school satisfaction.
Glazier and Harris (2021) examined the similarities and differences in the perceived face-to-face
and online teaching among graduate and undergraduate students at the University of Arkansas, USA (N
= 2,007). They collected qualitative and quantitative data via surveys. American students’ perceptions of
online teaching were lower than their perceptions of face-to-face teaching. Although this study involved
university students, not primary school students like our study, it is signicant that they mention the
possibility of establishing personal relationships. Apart from the importance of quality interaction between
students and teachers, Alqurashi (2019) points out the importance of interaction between students and
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Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
the content, which proved to be the strongest and most signicant predictor of student satisfaction in
online learning environment. Baber (2020) claims that student school satisfaction is a key component of
education and that it should be kept in mind during transition from ofine to online teaching.
Our ndings showed that students perceived a higher level of life satisfaction before the pandemic
in contrast to the period after the pandemic, and this difference is statistically signicant. It should be
mentioned that students perceived a higher level of life satisfaction than school satisfaction, at both time
points. A possible explanation is that factors outside school have an important impact on life satisfaction
in general. Achkar et al. (2019) carried out research with primary school students in Brazil (N = 400; age
= 11-17 years) and found that the adolescents who perceived a higher level of support provided by family
and community seemed to exhibit a higher level of life satisfaction.
School takes an important place in the lives of children and adolescents. Huebner, Ash and
Laughlin (2001) state that school satisfaction has a key role in dening the level of students’ quality of
life. The study carried out by Gempp and González-Carrasco (2021) conrmed a signicant reciprocal
effect between school satisfaction and overall life satisfaction. Examining the perceptions of sixth grade
students in Germany on an individual level, it was determined that life satisfaction is positively related to
teachers’ care and monitoring and autonomy, whereas school-related demands were related to lower life
satisfaction (Rathmann et al., 2018).
Since, in our study, we found a difference at a grade level (within generations), that is, we found
that the same students perceived lower values after the period of two years, it can be assumed that
one of the factors accountable for this difference is the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, these differences
might depend on the students’ age, that is, there are differences between lower and higher grades of
primary school. Taking into consideration the data of those participants who took part in both waves of
the study, the students who participated in the second wave were approximately two years older than the
participants in the rst wave. It is precisely why it was examined if there were differences in generations;
that is, if there were some differences in different generations in 2019 and 2021. Most differences were
found in life satisfaction, so students in fourth, fth and seventh grade in 2019 perceived a lower level of
life satisfaction than students in the same grades in 2021.
A longitudinal study, similar to ours, was conducted by Magson et al. (2021) on a sample of
adolescents (N = 248) in Australia (Mage = 14.4), a year before the pandemic and two months after
restrictive measures had been introduced by the government due to the pandemic. Among other
symptoms, the authors examined general life satisfaction and determined a signicant reduction in the
level of life satisfaction between the rst and the second measurement.
Conclusions
In this study, primary school students’ perceptions of teacher support, school satisfaction and life
satisfaction were examined. Student perceptions are inuenced by school environment and a broader
context (family, peers, society). The study was longitudinal, and the measurements were taken at two time
points – before the pandemic and after the pandemic, when students returned to school.
The results conrm the assumption that students were more satised with school, life and teacher
support before the outbreak of the pandemic. In the analysis of the obtained data, the values measured
in two waves, in a two-year time interval, were compared. Since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in the
period between the two measurements and the teaching process and life in general were organized in a
different way, an explanation can be found in the changed circumstances.
Still, school satisfaction and life satisfaction are frequently related to students’ age. It is a well-known
fact that younger students tend to exhibit a higher level of school satisfaction than older students, so the
results obtained in this study can be viewed within this context as well. Students included in the study are
in the period of late childhood and early adolescence, in terms of their developmental characteristics. In
this period of life, socializing with peers is of utmost importance. However, throughout the period of online
teaching during the pandemic, they were deprived of physical contacts, which might have inuenced their
perception of a lower level of life satisfaction.
Since all students seem to be generally dissatised with school, it poses a great pedagogical
challenge which should be addressed in the future. School is a considerably inert system and it seems
that, to a certain extent, it does not suit the needs and expectations of all students. The time after the
pandemic is a period in which teachers, scientists and educational experts have no time to remain passive;
they are expected to take immediate action instead.
However, the study has certain limitations. First of all, the sample was appropriate, and the data
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23
Vidić, T., Đuranović, M., & Klasnić, I. (2023). Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Support, and Their School and Life Satisfaction
Before and After The COVID-19 Pandemic, International Journal of Cognitive Research in Science, Engineering and Education
(IJCRSEE), 11(1), 15-25.
were collected only in one primary school. Students in other schools might have had different perceptions,
although all schools in the Republic of Croatia were following the guidelines by the Ministry of Science and
Education and conducted the teaching process in the same way (face-to-face or online). Furthermore,
it should be pointed out that two measurements at two time points did not involve the same students.
Students who had nished school during the time period of two years (that is how long the study lasted)
did not participate in the second wave of the study, and students attending third and fourth grade were
included, although they did not participate in the rst wave of the study.
The value of the study certainly lies in the selection of the participants, as a relatively small number
of studies have been conducted involving primary education. Most of studies have been conducted in
the area of higher education, involving undergraduate and graduate students, although online teaching
had been introduced at all levels of education. Moreover, younger students must have been put in a
more difcult position due to developmental characteristics, insufciently developed digital competencies
and lack of independence in work. Therefore, it was by no means harder for them to get involved in and
participate in a new form of teaching and learning. As far as we are aware, this is the rst study conducted
in Croatia that examined these variables, before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, in primary school
students.
Regardless of the fact that this was a longitudinal study, the changes in students’ perceptions cannot
be ascribed solely to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Numerous other factors (for example, family
situation, gender, exposure to media content during the pandemic) might have had a direct or indirect
inuence on students’ perceptions. On the other hand, we cannot ignore the pandemic or marginalize its
impact. That is why this study could inspire other studies. Besides, since online teaching will certainly be
conducted in the future, the obtained results might help direct attention to the efforts that teachers might
make in order to raise the level of online teaching quality and students’ satisfaction.
Conict of interests
The authors declare no conict of interest.
Author Contributions
All persons who meet authorship criteria T.V., M.Đ., I.K. are listed as authors, and all authors
certify that they have participated sufciently in the work to take public responsibility for the content,
including participation in the concept T.V., M.Đ., I.K., design T.V., M.Đ., I.K., formal analysis T.V., M.Đ., I.K.,
investigation T.V., methodology T.V., visualization T.V., writing M.Đ., I.K., and revision of the manuscript
T.V., M.Đ., I.K.. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
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