Coronavirus: Is COVID-19 an opportunity to improve schools?

There are events that disrupt educational systems. Then there is the coronavirus pandemic, which has led to school closures in 191 countries - all but a handful of countries in the world - affecting 1.6 billion children.

For many, this is a struggle, especially for marginalized families who fear that their children will fall behind in their educational attainment.

However, experts say this may present a rare opportunity. The world has changed overnight, and this could be the impetus for an overhaul of classrooms to make them better for everyone.

If we have the right kind of vision and execution, we can fundamentally reform our education system,” says Ria Badshahri, education entrepreneur and technology expert.

Our current model of education—teachers standing in front of rows of students who are supposed to be listening—has not changed in decades.

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Now, as classes resume in some countries after weeks off, people are asking what we can learn from the experience, to come out stronger.

Even before the outbreak of COVID-19, and with the rapid changes in technology, the question of how we can integrate this new knowledge into our educational systems was already under discussion.

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Artificial intelligence enables us to adjust teaching, according to the ability of each student, and to transfer monotonous tasks from teachers to machines.

Meanwhile, virtual reality can make learning an immersive and exciting experience.

Badshahri, who is also the founder and CEO of the “Awecademy” platform for online education in Dubai and Canada, says: “Many students around the world feel bored, and there is no interest in distance learning during the closure, but many of them feel bored and disconnected from the current education system as well.

A new visionfor schools

OiAcademy uses a variety of online and offline platforms to teach topics such as big picture thinking, radical creativity, empathy, and the ethical use of technology.

They advocate an interdisciplinary approach, a way of assessing students not by exams but by their projects, what they create and the impact they can have on the world.

"This makes learning more interesting for the students, because they know why they are learning something," Badshahri says.

Proximity to the workforce is a key part of the concept. Oikademy is not located in a traditional school building, but is an integral part of Dubai 2071, a space designed to digitally connect companies, startups and government agencies.

This could be the solution to meet the requirements of social distancing in light of the COVID-19 disease.

In the same way, remote work has peaked during the pandemic, workplaces are evolving, and schools can become spaces for collaboration, rather than places where students spend all day.

"We need to reimagine schools, so that they are not just like these isolated silos, where children are trapped, but integrated as a space where they can engage with the workforce," says Badshahri.

One silver lining of the current crisis, Badshahri says, is that children are now being prepared to work remotely.

"Many of them are developing skills such as running an online course, speaking digitally, and collaborating digitally, possibly on potential projects," she adds.

"If schools are doing it right, they are actually preparing students for the workforce of the future," she continues.

Reaching the kids

But is the teacher doing the right thing? What can they achieve under the current circumstances?

By June, schools had reopened in about 70 countries, but more than a billion children had not yet returned to school, according to UNICEF.

There are good efforts made by some governments to reach pupils during the lockdown, says Robert Jenkins, UNICEF Director of Education.

"We have some evidence that we are reaching children who were not reached when the schools were open," he adds.

"We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity, in the reopening process, to bypass school systems and support children."

According to UNICEF, of the 127 countries, 90 percent say they use a mix of tools to reach pupils, from online resources to printed worksheets.

But not everyone has access to the Internet.

Less than half of people in 71 countries are connected to the Internet. In the majority of countries in Africa, it is as low as one in four people.

But poor access to technology is just the tip of the iceberg.

WhatBehindthe digital divide

Maria Eduarda is an 18-year-old girl who dreams of becoming the first person in her family to study at university.

Maria's father is a builder, and her family resides in Santa Cruz, a poor area on the western edge of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The girl is studying at the preparatory stage, in a school run by a charitable organization. And Maria's lessons after the closure moved to the WhatsApp application, because most students do not have enough internet capacity to play the videos.

Of the 5.5 million students who took secondary school exams in Brazil in 2018, only 42 percent had computers at home, according to an NGO in Rio de Janeiro.

The majority of these, who did not have computers, were black and female and attended public schools.

"This data hides multiple levels of deprivation," says Jasmine Montero of the charity Casa Fluminense. "Students who do not have a computer often live in homes with only a few bedrooms, and cannot find a quiet place to focus and study." ".

Many of these students are forced to work in order to earn money, and girls in particular are forced to take care of their younger brothers.

Building expectations

Deprivation affects educational attainment not only in low- and middle-income countries, but also in wealthier societies.

In Britain, one in six people have poor reading and writing skills. But in Balsall Heath, one of the most deprived areas of Birmingham, one in three adults suffer from a lack of these skills.

Hafsa Sheikh is the Co-Director of SmartLyte, an education center that partners with GoodThings to improve basic skills among local families, most of whom are from the Yemeni, Pakistani, Syrian and Somali communities.

The idea is to raise the aspirations of parents, so that they can support their children's future.

"What we are saying is that you are the main teacher for your child. You are the first educator for your child. What happens at home makes the biggest difference."

Hafsa explained that parents, who lack language and digital skills, often feel weak and disbelieve once their children go to school. There is nothing they can do to support them.

Smartlite offers them a range of courses, from English for beginners, to basic math, budgeting and computer skills. They also give them practical advice on how to get financial help and take care of their well-being.

Hafdah says that some of their programs, which are held in a local library, saved that library from being closed.

Many families were scared, they didn't think they belonged in that place, and so they missed out on the free resources and events available to everyone.

Access to the school gate

As schools begin to welcome students back, UNICEF Director of Education Robert Jenkins believes governments must support families, through social protection and cash transfers, to ensure children go to school.

Jenkins believes that Covid 19 has shown parents, and society as a whole, how important schools are for children away from lessons, as they provide them with emotional support, nutrition, water and protection.

Although we are far from a different model of education, governments can use the lessons of the pandemic to look for better alternatives, Badshahri says.

"One way to start experimenting with these solutions is to incorporate them into extracurricular activities for an hour or two a week," she says.

Governments could also adopt rules, allowing for more interdisciplinary, project-based models, and giving teachers opportunities for professional development.

Deshahri admits that cohort education may not end up as a radical experiment, but we can aim for a "hybrid model", which also includes some better alternatives.

"The current system is a legacy of the past, and it will take time to change. We have to be patient," she says.

"But the new normal for some schools globally will be the transition to a blended model, where students can do a lot on their own, and schools focus on collaboration and problem-solving, assessment and socialization," she adds.