UNESCO now is concerned that more then 290 million students are not attending classes because schools are closing as a way of preventing the virus from spreading further.
22 countries on three continents announced or implementing schools closing. Only two weeks ago it happened only in China. Now another 13 countries joined the effort shutting down schools nationwide. In another 9 countries local schools on the territories with highest risk were closed. If they continue to close on the whole territory of these countries another 180-million kids won’t join schools.
The main concern is not only that the performance of kids will go down but the economic affect as some parents will have to stay home for young children.
UNESCO suggests using distant/remote education to close that gap. I totally support that idea as my own child has enjoyed this option for two years and it has worked out very well for him.
Here’s how it works in Ukraine. There is an online school site that redirects students on YouTube online lessons. You can “attend” based on your personal schedule or the schedule of your household. It’s just like a regular classroom in that you have homework assignments and take examinations.
It has the same pros and cons of virtual versus offline. And the same checks and balances. For instance, cheating on homework shows up in online tests that are monitored. The increase in student load means more teachers all over the world have an opportunity to make a living this way.
It is also as portable as a laptop. As you know, many modern families don’t stay constantly in one place, but having a child studying at an offline school requires either leaving them with grandparents or other relatives to look after them. Or constantly changing schools with the resulting constant disruptions in the poor child’s learning processes, which are still growing because they’re a child and that is one thing a child does. Grows.
Perhaps implementing online options for times like these and synchronizing them with offline education could provide a whole new opportunity. For example, you came to a town other than your own but of your country. You went to the school there and enrolled in the class of your age. And you discovered, to your relief and delight, that they are learning what you’d be learning either online or in any other class in your country.
I like to believe that we could, at least within the borders of one country, make education fluid and synchronized. It seems to me it would make so much sense. I’m at the moment not saying international but if some international school appeared that will do exactly the same worldwide, that would be such a relief for parents who have to change places and countries on regular basis.
