Page 40 - EducationWorld January 2021

Cover Story

Powering post-pandemic schools tained when the pandemic subsides.

Four emerging global trends in education from Covid-19
n a brilliant paper published last September, Emiliana Vegas 1. Accelerating education inequality. Education inequality is ac-
Iand Rebecca Winthrop, researchers at the Brookings Institution, celerating in unprecedented fashion, especially where before
USA — the world’s largest and most respected think tank — the pandemic it was already high.
suggest ways and means to place education back on track 2. A leapfrog moment. Innovation has suddenly moved from the
after the devastating impact of the Coronavirus, aka Covid-19, margins to the centre of many education systems, and there
pandemic. Edited excerpts: is an opportunity to identify new strategies, that if sustained,
It is valuable to look beyond immediate concerns to what can help young people get the education that prepares them
“ may be possible for education on the other side of the for our changing times.
Covid-19 pandemic. It is hard to imagine there will be another 3. Rising public support. There is newfound public recognition
moment in history when the central role of education in the of how essential schools are in society and a window of op-
economic, social and political prosperity and stability of nations portunity to leverage this support for making them stronger.
is so obvious and well understood by the general population. 4. New education allies. The pandemic has galvanised new
Now is the time to chart a vision for how education can emerge actors in the community — from parents to social welfare or-
stronger from this global crisis than ever before, and propose ganisations — to support children’s learning like never before.
a path for capitalising on education’s newfound support in Five proposed actions to guide the transformation of education
virtually every community across the globe. systems:
In essence, we argue that strong and inclusive public edu- 1. Leverage public schools. Put public schools at the centre of
cation systems are essential for the short and long-term re- education systems given their essential role in equalising op-
covery of society, and that there is an opportunity to leapfrog portunity across dimensions within society.
toward powered-up schools. 2. A laser focus on the instructional core. Emphasise the instruc-
tional core, the heart of the teaching and learning process.
How educators engage with students and instructional ma-
terials, including education technology, is crucial for learning
given the strong evidence that educators (teachers) are the
most important school-side factor in student learning.
3. Harness education technology. Deploy education technology to
power up schools long term in a way that meets the teaching
and learning needs of students and educators; otherwise,
technology risks becoming a costly distraction.
4. Parent engagement. Forge stronger, more trusting relation-
ships between parents and teachers.
5. An iterative approach. Embrace the principles of improvement
science required to evaluate, course correct, document and
scale new approaches that can help power up schools over
time.
Conclusion. Having a vision of the change we want to see mat-
While this vision is aspirational, it is by no means impracti- ters, and can help guide discussion, debate, and — ultimately
cal. Schools at the centre of a community ecosystem of learn- — action. ”
ing and support is an idea whose time has come, and some of (Source: https://www.brookings.edu/research/beyond-re-
the emerging practices amid Covid-19, such as empowering opening-schools-how-education-can-emerge-stronger-than-
parents to support their children’s education, should be sus- before-covid-19/)

dren who are dished out rock-bottom much hyped May 12, 2020 Rs.20.97 detailed, unprecedented cover fea-
education. In Shastri Bhavan, Delhi, lakh crore pandemic aid package, ture titled ‘Dear Prime Minister: Why
which houses the Union education which provided tax breaks for small no pandemic package for education?’
ministry and indeed in the BJP/NDA businesses, incentives for domestic (https://www.educationworld.in/
government, education of the world’s manufacturing and free foodgrains dear-prime-minister-why-no-pan-
largest child and youth population ag- for the poor has totally ignored the demic-package-for-education/). In
gregating over 500 million — poten- education sector despite repeated des- this seven-page feature we also high-
tially the world’s largest human re- perate pleas made by educationists, lighted the huge generous grants and
source bank — is a low priority issue. NISA (National Independent Schools provisions made in several countries
Prime minister Narendra Modi’s Alliance) and EducationWorld in a including the US, UK, Australia, Can-

40 EDUCATIONWORLD JANUARY 2021