The prolonged tentacle of Covid19 spreads every part of the world. The main cause of concern was education during Covid-19 pandemic. Widespread lockdown gives us a test of sedentary life. Education system of 171 countries affected by the pandemic nature of Covid19 pandemic. Online education is the best medium to keep afloat the education system. One billion children all over the world enrolled with the remote education programme. The new form of education initially weighs havoc on the mind of kids. Direct communication
between teacher and student truncated. Students of third world countries were affected most by the sudden blitzkrieg of coronavirus. For online education internet connection, laptops, tablets, android mobile are the prime requirements. Most people of underdeveloped nations can not afford both high-speed internet connection coupled with laptop or tablet. Poor internet connection and shallow income of average people of underdeveloped countries turned online education a distant dream. To overcome the barriers imposed by poverty, multiple third world countries supplied paper-based assignments to students and used national broadcast systems like TV, radio to conduct classes for students.
Lockdown & Online Education System
UNESCO tried their level best to maintain a semblance between developed and underdeveloped countries. UNESCO informed the education ministry of various underdeveloped countries about the lacuna of remote education after analysing the available data related to the education of multiple countries. Developed countries have all the resources to counter shortcomings of the remote education process. The prime concern of UNESCO is that third world countries are barely equipped to counter the negative impact of remote education systems.
The online or remote education system is not potent enough to become the viable alternative to the traditional education system, where the alma mater played an important role to shape the mental growth of kids. UNESCO is more concerned about the standard of education during the Covid19 pandemic time in underdeveloped countries, where people of lower strata of the society find it difficult to meet both ends.
The reopening of schools is not possible in quick succession. The kids of low-income families were worst affected by Covid19 pandemic, as high-speed internet and laptop or tablet is out of reach for them which are prime requirements for online education. The underdeveloped countries do not have any viable system to track the lacuna in the current education system. A couple of low-income countries chalks out a plan or strategy to bring all the kids under the ambit of the remote education system. National level TV
and radio turned out to be viable media to disseminate education among poor kids. As per the latest data available to UNESCO, 40% of low-income countries failed to provide succour to the kids of vulnerable sections of the society to continue their education. The reopening of schools is the only viable option for the education of deprived kids. In third world countries, the gulf between urban and rural peoples is cavernous. The kids who belong to urban areas and upper-class echelons of society have better access to education.
Impact of Covid-19 on Online Education
The importance of education during a Covid19 pandemic is immense, particularly for poor income countries. A couple of poor countries in Asia had done commendable jobs in the field of education during the Covid19 pandemic and kids received quality education as a lockdown strictly imposed.
Nepal is one of the poorest countries in Asia, with a population of 28 million. The literacy rate of Nepal is 50% which is among the lowest in the world. Online education is a distant dream for most of the 7 million students. The remote education system turned to be a reliable alternative to online education and sustained the comprehensive growth of students.
Cambodia's per capita income is the lowest among Asian countries. The government closed all the schools on 30th November 2020, to save the students from the clutches of Covid19 pandemic. High-speed internet, laptop, tablets are distant dreams for students due to the poor income of the families. The MOEYS invented a unique system to overcome all the
barriers and keeps the flow of education uninterrupted. Recorded classes were posted on Facebook, YouTube channel and e-learning website. The unique features of the education system are reading at home, collaborated by librarians and family members. The main cue rule of the unique education system is reading aloud, which develops comprehensive power among kids.
East Timor is one of the low-income countries of Asia. Like all the other nations, Covid19 pandemic spreads its tentacle in this poverty stricken-country. The education system was affected due to the sudden lockdown of schools. GPE provided $3.5 million to the government to support the education system. The government initiated a plan called "Eskola Ba Uma" which means school goes home, a viable distance education system to make education available to every kid of the country. Recorded classes were broadcasted through TV, radio and various online platforms.
The importance of education during a Covid19 pandemic is huge for a country like East Timor. Government should take tangible steps to provide internet service to people of different strata of society at a cheap rate to end the disparity between rich and downtrodden people of the society. The government of all countries of the world should prepare contingency plans to make education available during such critical periods. There are some positive aspects of Covid19 generated lockdown. Remote learning system is the positive outcome of prolonged lockdown. Online education systems should be available to kids of the dilapidated section of society.
Keywords
Education During Covid19
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on education
Impact of covid-19 on online education
Importance of education during pandemic
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