The coronavirus pandemic is likely to bring about many deep, long-lasting, upside down vicissitudes in the whole world society and their economy. The Education sector, a critical aspect of a country’s economic future, is no different which has also faced the wrath of this pandemic disrupting its day-to-day business. Keep reading to find about the new learning challenges people have faced in this Covid crisis.
Out in the open, lockdown is considered the safe bet to contain the spread of Covid-19. Most governments from all over the world have temporarily closed education institutions like schools, colleges, and universities. With 144 countries across the world closing pre-primary, primary, lower-secondary, and upper-secondary levels of education, a total of 1,186,127,211 i.e. 67.7% learners are affected. This pandemic situation has given us an opportunity to reorganize the education sector. So many organizations took this epidemic as a prospect to visualize innovative ways to reach/synchronize with their student in the changing world.
With the shortest notice period of lockdown, things are difficult to implement on a full-scale digitalization transformation. New Learning Challenges has risen up due to the closure of many educational institutes, there is a makeshift towards eLearning solutions like webinars, distance learning, online or virtual classes through various apps, you-tube channels, google classrooms, recorded sessions and training, education radio and TV, Virtual Seminars, etc. across the world. The various governments have their own response to the crisis.
Virtual class room leading from the front, has become the most incomparable convenient and flexible eLearning solution to students during this lockdown. So many universities, schools, and colleges switched to virtual classes for their student safety e.g.
- Imperial college of London has switched to multi-mode teaching for Autumn term which offers a combination of in-person and online learning. They started teaching solely in the remote mode where open-book final exams were conducted remotely, MBA students join through remote induction week and Machine Learning Module of Applied Computational Science and Engineering MSc students are taken remotely.
- One of the world’s top universities, Harvard University, too has chosen to work remotely to keep a check on the spread of COVID-19. Though they are planning to reopen in a phased manner with essential staff on campus only their remote teaching, learning, working and research will continue till summer.
- Other premier institutes like Manchester University, Cambridge university have decided to have lectures online for the entire year. Similar discussions are going on in most of the universities around the UK and beyond.
- Peru decided to close the school for the remaining 2020 school year. MaCTec is reaching girls aged from 8 to 11 for online science workshops adopting online meeting platform Zoom to engage them in experiments and learner-led discussion.
- Online Programs like eTwinning, SALTO-YOUTH, etc. are getting support from the European commission to excel at different levels of education in Europe.
- With teens stuck at home amid lockdown, UK offered virtual cyber schools encouraging to upskill their skill set. It is surely a unique offering offered during the lockdown.
- Adopting eLearning The University of Wolverhampton is even planned to offer “a full digital suite of course material” in their upcoming September 20-21 program which includes recorded lectures and learning resources.
AACSB Quick-Take Survey on COVID-19: Online/Virtual Instruction Findings
It is more evident from world bank data which has prepared a catalog for emerging approaches towards new learning challenges and country-wise utilizing technology to support remote learning opportunity. The Country’s infrastructure is the key to adopt viable eLearning solutions during current tough time. Online learning has gained traction and is getting revamped adopting the latest educational technologies due to novel coronavirus. As this time passes, we will get habitual to the situation but implementing an eLearning solution is a safety measure that needs to be adopted in our lifestyle giving a befitting reply to this pandemic.
