Outline:
1. Introduction
2. Challenges in learning
and teaching
Possible solutions:
1.2 E-learning
2.2 Remote teaching
3. Lack of personal
interaction between teachers and students
Learning loss
Long-term challenges
Learning recovery programs
Reserve the education
budget
4. Conclusion
4.1 Combined efforts of
government and public
4.2 Motivate your youth
Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease that spreads through the infected person’s liquid particles from the mouth or nose when they breathe, sneeze, cough, sing, or speak. The first case of this disease was discovered on 31 December 2019 in Wuhan City, China. The roots of this ailment are embedded in the early 2020s when this disease rapidly prevailed in more than 114 countries and caused 4291 deaths until March 2020.
So, to beat the COVID-19 pandemic, a complete lockdown was observed that hit all walks of life badly. Among those many aspects, the sector of education was intensely affected.Covid-19 left unforgettable impacts on all industries and in this essay, we will throw light on the impacts of covid-19 on education.
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Challenges in Learning and Teaching
The complete lockdown during the pandemic
was a big challenge for every country and every family. The whole world was
fighting against this disease. The infected ones were counting their breaths in
quarantine while the healthier, unaffected people were struggling to survive
even when jobs and all businesses were closed.
At the onset of this malady,
survival was the first question and of course, children’s education had also completely
stopped. Learning losses increased and all institutes began to find ways to
keep continuing education. According to an estimation, when the pandemic was at
its peak, 45 countries in Central Asia and Europe shut down their schools
affecting 185 million students.
Possible
Solutions
As teachers and administration were
unprepared for this calamity. They could only tackle this emergency situation
by managing remote learning systems almost immediately. Here again, the obvious
limitation was the lack of interaction between teachers and students.
With broadcast, it was not possible.
However, many countries took initiatives to improve the remote educational
system, using email, social media, telephone, and even the post office. Ukraine
also took effective measures such as broadcasting video lessons and online
distance learning programs for remote teaching and learning.
But unfortunately, despite best
efforts for organizing e-learning programs, evidence shows that impacts of
covid-19 on education resulted in learning losses. These learning losses
outside the classroom pose long-term challenges and outcomes.
In many under-developed countries,
the covid-19 pandemic effects compelled thousands to lacs of poor students to
leave education and move to workshops. So, the impacts of covid-19 are negative
on many children’s future well-being. The learning losses translate fewer chances
to access higher education, lower future earnings, and lower labor market
participation!
To overcome these challenges and
drastic outcomes, here are some recommendations for all countries. These will
help alleviate learning losses and mitigate challenges by shaping a more
resilient system that could withstand future crises.
First of all, the governments must
ensure that the students who were left behind receive enough support to meet
the expected learning targets. Research shows that 12-weeks tutoring programs
can assist students to make progress equivalent to three to five months of
normal schooling.
For example, in Italy, middle school
students showed a 4.7 percent progress in their performance in English, Math,
and Italian upon receiving three hours of online tutoring via smartphone,
computer, or tablet. So, the learning recovery programs can stand of greater
help to make up for the deficiency in children’s education.
The governments should also protect
the education budget to make sure the resilient recovery. It is also essential
for the governments to provide financial support to the schools that need it
most. They can serve the most valuable students by reserving more funds and
resources for the institutes that are struggling to serve high-poverty and
high-minority populations.
They can also implement the strategy
of providing more social support to academic staff and teachers by increasing
their wages and ensuring their school safety to combat the impacts of Covid-19
on education.
With the combined efforts of the
government and citizens, the countries and societies will not only recover from
the adverse effects of the pandemic, but these actions will also better equip
them for future crises.
To achieve this aim, all nations require to build blended models of education. These versatile education models will prepare schools to switch between remote and face-to-face learning as per the circumstances. This action will secure students’ education under other shocks, such as severe weather conditions or natural disasters. With that in mind, educationists need to develop a flexible curriculum that can easily be taught online or in person!
So, it is apparent that the impacts
of Covid-19 on education are adverse, but it doesn’t mean that those effects
can’t be shattered. In almost, all countries, authorities have taken measures
to regulate distance learning and expand the number of schools equipped with
digital devices, and internet connectivity to take advantage of blended
learning approaches when the need arises. These combined and consistent efforts
will help all educational institutions get rid of the negative impacts of Covid-19
on education!
Also, inculcate the problem-solving spirit in youth so that they
can never give up and step ahead with positive mind under all types of
circumstances.
Contributed by Shagufta Afza
