EDITORIAL: Online learning part of the new normal
According to the World Economic Forum, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed education forever. COVID-19 has resulted in schools being shut all across the world and globally, over 1.2 billion children are out of the classroom. As a result, education has changed dramatically with the distinctive rise of e-learning, whereby teaching is undertaken remotely and on digital platforms.
The World Economic Forum goes on to state that research suggests that online learning has been shown to increase retention of information and take less time, meaning the changes which the coronavirus have caused, might be here to stay. However, there are challenges to overcome. For instance, some students without reliable Internet access and/or technology, struggle to participate in digital learning.
Here in Barbados, the Ministry of Education, Technological and Vocational Training (METVT) indicated back in April, that all public schools were preparing to roll out online teaching using the Google G Suite for Education platform, which could be accessed from any PC, laptop, tablet or smart mobile device. The METVT meanwhile stressed the importance of education to the nation’s children during the curfew period, and noted additionally that it was working with providers and suppliers to ensure every child had Internet access and devices to utilise the new e-learning platform. The Ministry also said that it would be using radio and television in the interim, to provide educational content to ensure that students are not disadvantaged.
It was later revealed that the third term in the 2019-2020 school year would officially start on Monday, May 4, 2020, using the online learning platform, as schools remained closed as the country implemented Phase Two with a new reopening schedule. To date, some teachers and students have been navigating the online learning system well, whilst others have had a few struggles. Parents, many of whom have demanding full-time jobs, have also had to reconfigure their day to accommodate for this new process, which is not without its challenges. Essentially, many parents of young children will be the ones assisting them with the work sent, after their face-to-face sessions are complete and they still need to remain productive, whilst preparing meals and taking care of the family in general. For those who have to leave home, there is also the challenge of trying to decide who will provide child care services in an environment that emphasizes social distancing and how those assisting can provide supervision as well, for the very work that needs to be done. Thus, at this time, the best balance must be found to enable student learning, whilst also ensuring that key challenges can be ironed out.
That said, this is the time for secondary school principals’ voices to be heard, about how their schools and teachers are coping. We are not hearing many of them, except for a comment or two on the guidelines governing remote emergency teaching and the dos and don’ts for teachers, parents and students. This is a whole new world for all involved to navigate and whilst it is a fairly new process, school principals can take the lead and even use the technology to reach out and send key messages about how to cope and thrive in such an environment. The unions will be there to address any concerns the teachers have, but the principals and also the parent-teacher associations can certainly do more to motivate and encourage students, as they navigate this new normal of online teaching and learning.