COVID-19: Lockdown on Schools or Students' Future?

Doomed are those who think- "Education is an option". No, my friend, it is a necessity. One that can't be ignored, postponed or set aside for any period of time. For a world population of 7.8 billion, we only have 3000000 schools(approximately) which cater to 1.29 billion students.

The pandemic has shut every possible medium of physical education, small and big. Almost 1 billion students have been affected by this, especially the students who are residing in under-developed countries. The students are fearful that they might be falling behind in their education since the schools are closed to contain the vast spread of the coronavirus. Seemingly the only solution to this problem so far is to provide remote education using different technological mediums.

Internet, being the revolutionary epitome of all communication, is the best tool in our hands to curb this problem. Online teaching has been a propagative learning medium for students from quite some time now. YouTube, Coaching classes and even personal tutors have used the internet to propagate their learning processes smoothly.

Schools too can use Internet to make study material, readings, documentaries and all other necessary requirements available to students online keeping confidentiality and their reputations in check. Television, radios and other broadcasting channels are other alternative means of communication that can be used to spread awareness and basic education to tier-3 cities in low or under-developed countries.

Using available E-resources like websites, mobile apps and other machine learning techniques schools can shift their day to day activities online. Marking daily attendance, having online classes, tweaking the curriculum, preparing a home-friendly study curriculum, and updating parents about their child's status are the major requirements that can be fulfilled with the help of machine learning and Artificial Intelligence.

However, there are still problems to this. The bitter truth is that not every student has access to online resources, but in the absence of any other feasible alternative, it is the best available solution at this point of time.

• 73 per cent out of the 127 countries reporting to the UNICEF COVID-19 Education Response Survey are using online platforms to deliver education while schools remain closed. 
• About 75 per cent of 127 countries surveyed use TV to deliver remote learning, even though, fewer than half of children in rural areas have access to TV as compared to their peers in urban areas. 
• Radio is the third most-used platform by governments to deliver education while schools are closed, with 58 per cent of 127 reporting countries using this method. However, radio ownership varies across the regions. For example, only 25 per cent of households in South Asia own a radio, compared to 75 per cent of households in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Hence, providing the world’s disadvantaged and marginalized children with equitable access to learning opportunities is foundational to creating a sustainable future and must be a priority for the global education sector.

Online Education is the best tool in our hands to secure the building blocks of our future from falling apart. It enables the students to continue their studies even during lockdown. The sense of normality brought by similar work routines as was during their school time may help them stabilise their mental well-being too. As Malcolm said- “Education is a passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to the ones who prepare for it”.

- Sweety

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