Updated 2 Nov 2020

The federal role in advancing education equity and excellence

Research on successful nations makes it clear that the heart of a strong system of education is a highly skilled, stable, and diverse profession. The United States has invested far less than other countries in the educator workforce, providing little support for training, mentoring, and professional learning, and in most states, salaries have been allowed to fall far below those of other professions requiring comparable education, and even further for those working in the field of early care and education. We must learn from lessons as we chart the path forward. It is our collective responsibility—including the federal government’s—to ensure that all young people have equal access to a high-quality, world-class education. This goal has never been more important than in today’s fast-growing knowledge economy that is coupled with increasing rates of poverty as more and more families are left behind.

https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/advancing-education-2020-brief

Ensuring education equity during and after Covid-19

The Covid-19 pandemic has had devastating effects on our society. In addition to presenting new challenges, the pandemic has exacerbated existing educational inequities for students of colour, those with disabilities, those from households with low incomes and those experiencing homelessness. As we face uncertain changes in public school operations, instruction and funding through the foreseeable future, IDRA proposes the policies in this article to preserve and promote educational equity.

https://www.idra.org/education_policy/ensuring-education-equity-during-and-after-covid-19

Education during the Covid-19 crisis: Opportunities and constraints of using EdTech in low-income countries

In this brief, Digital Pathways and The EdTech Hub examine the key constraints of using EdTech at scale at a time of crisis, and highlight the opportunities that have so far emerged, in a rapidly changing context. We provide evidence and examples to inform policy and programming decisions.

https://edtechhub.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/education-during-covid-19-crisis.pdf

Reopening schools in the context of Covid-19: Health and safety guidelines from other countries

As the United States considers reopening schools after the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, policymakers and administrators need to consider how to reopen in a way that keeps students and staff safe. This brief provides insight into health and safety guidelines and social distancing strategies used in other countries that have successfully reopened their schools in the context of Covid-19. Examples are intended to support school policymakers and administrators in the US as they plan for reopening.

https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/reopening-schools-covid-19-brief

Covid-19 worsens education inequality between rich and poor

Inequality in education influences the competitiveness of the country decades later. While countries are striving to strike the balance of preventing new infections and reopening the economy, education for the future must also be considered.

https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Datawatch/COVID-19-worsens-education-inequality-between-rich-and-poor

The impact of Covid-19 on education – Insights from Education at a Glance 2020

This brochure focuses on a selection of indicators from Education at a Glance, selected for their particular relevance in the current context. Their analysis enables the understanding of countries’ response and potential impact from the Covid-19 containment measures in eight topics.

https://www.oecd.org/education/the-impact-of-covid-19-on-education-insights-education-at-a-glance-2020.pdf

Policy brief: Education during Covid-19 and beyond

The Covid-19 crisis and the unparalleled education disruption is far from over. As many as 100 countries have yet to announce a date for schools to reopen and across the world, governments, unions, parents and children are grappling with when and how to approach the next phase. Countries have started planning to reopen schools nationwide, either based on grade level and by prioritising exam classes, or through localised openings in regions with fewer cases of the virus. These decisions carry enormous social and economic implications and will have lasting effects on educators, on children and youth, on their parents – especially women – and indeed on societies as a whole.

https://www.un.org/development/desa/dspd/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2020/08/sg_policy_brief_covid-19_and_education_august_2020.pdf

Education and Covid-19: Focusing on the long-term impact of school closures

The Covid-19 crisis has forced school closures in 188 countries, heavily disrupting the learning process of more than 1.7 billion children, youth and their families. During this time, distance-learning solutions were implemented to ensure education continuity, and much of the current debate focuses on how much students have learnt during school closures. However, while this potential learning loss may only be temporary, other elements that happen in the absence of traditional schooling, such as the curbing of educational aspirations or the disengagement from the school system, will have a long-term impact on students’ outcomes. This “hysteresis” effect in education requires specific attention, and this paper outlines a dual strategy to bring disengaged students back to school, and mitigate effectively student disengagement in case of future lockdowns.

https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/policy-responses/education-and-covid-19-focusing-on-the-long-term-impact-of-school-closures-2cea926e

Restarting and reinventing school: Learning in the time of Covid and beyond

This report provides an overarching framework that focuses on how policymakers and educators can support equitable, effective teaching and learning regardless of the medium through which that takes place. This framework provides research, state and local examples, and policy recommendations in 10 key areas that speak both to transforming learning and to closing opportunity and achievement gaps. Each of these 10 policy priorities will help schools reinvent themselves around principles of equity, authentic learning, and stronger relationships, and they require shifts from policymakers and educators alike.

https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/restarting-reinventing-school-covid-report?utm_source=LPI+Master+List&utm_campaign=d4934e3800-LPIMC_RestartReinvent_20200825&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_7e60dfa1d8-d4934e3800-42333515

Covid-19 and response from the higher education sector

The spread of Covid-19 has necessitated a range of extraordinary responses by states and education institutions, from travel restrictions to campus shutdowns. Prolonged crisis and recovery periods will drive greater localisation, online learning and financial austerity. Education institutions in “returning back to campus” must focus on both short- and long-term challenges. The webinar brings together leaders from global universities and institutes of higher learning to share insights and discuss leading practices.

https://www.pwc.com/sg/en/publications/a-resilient-tomorrow-covid-19-response-and-transformation/higher-education.html

School education during Covid-19: Were teachers and students ready?

As a response to the coronavirus pandemic most governments around the world locked down their populations and closed their schools in an attempt to contain the spread of the virus. As some countries are now starting to gradually reopen their schools, these Covid-19 country notes aim to bring together evidence from various OECD education surveys, to examine countries’ responses to the Covid-19 crisis, with a view to inform and guide future policy responses to the crisis. These country notes focus on the level of preparedness of educational systems to support the learning of students during the health crisis.

http://www.oecd.org/education/coronavirus-education-country-notes.htm

Tackling 3 obstacles to digital transformation in education

Covid-19 has significantly compressed the timeline for digital transformation in education, with HBL thrust upon teachers and students alike. This has also given rise to a public perception of two gaps associated with digital transformation in education: a lack of equal resources and perceived variations in how teachers engage students in HBL. Nevertheless, both perceived gaps indicate the need to think more deeply about how we can sustain digital transformation in Singapore schools. Professor Peg Ertmer from Purdue University identifies three barriers influencing digital transformation in education: infrastructure, design competencies of teachers, and the sustainability of digital transformation.

https://www.todayonline.com/commentary/tackling-3-obstacles-digital-transformation-education

Institutes of higher learning enhance support for class of 2020 in broadening their skills

To support fresh graduates from the Class of 2020 in broadening their skillsets and accessing more opportunities across sectors, the Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) are offering 3-to-6-month programmes which lead to micro-credentials or certifications. These pathways can be achieved by stacking the earlier-announced complimentary Continuing Education and Training (CET) modules, and are part of MOE's and the IHLs continued support for the Class of 2020 in further deepening their skills amidst the uncertain economic outlook.

https://www.moe.gov.sg/news/press-releases/institutes-of-higher-learning-enhance-support-for-class-of-2020-in-broadening-their-skills

Schools after Covid-19: From a teaching culture to a learning culture

Before Covid-19 disrupted our lives and forced our kids to open their laptops and learn from home, the first day of school was a rite of passage – the start of a life-determining journey that has broadly followed the same shape and rhythm for generations. This one-size-fits-all approach to education has been in place for a couple of hundred years. Now, however, it is undergoing unprecedented change and not just because of Covid-19. The response to the coronavirus has demonstrated how technology can help transform how we teach and learn. But the push for change started long before the pandemic struck, and it will go on long after the threat subsides. For years, policymakers have been exploring new transformative approaches to K-12 education that go far beyond just online lessons at home.

https://news.microsoft.com/apac/features/technology-in-schools-from-a-teaching-culture-to-a-learning-culture

Zoom is your new classroom: Will online education become the norm after Covid-19?

Most students in Singapore go through a couple days of e-learning at some point of their lives. But in the last few months, the Covid-19 pandemic forced online education to take centre stage. Methods such as live broadcast lectures, video conference lessons, and online assessments became an everyday occurrence in place of traditional classes. After online education capabilities have been put to the test in the past few months, does this open the possibility that it could become the new normal?

https://vulcanpost.com/701216/university-online-education-covid-19-singapore

The Covid-19 pandemic: Shocks to education and policy responses

The Covid-19 pandemic threatens to make education outcomes even worse. The pandemic has already had profound impacts on education by closing schools almost everywhere in the planet, in the largest simultaneous shock to all education systems in our lifetimes. But it is possible to counter those shocks, and to turn crisis into opportunity. The first step is to cope successfully with the school closures, by protecting health and safety and doing what they can to prevent students' learning loss using remote learning. As the school system stabilises, countries can use the focus and innovativeness of the recovery period to “build back better”. The key: don't replicate the failures of the pre-Covid-19 systems, but instead build toward improved systems and accelerated learning for all students.

https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/33696

Keeping the doors of learning open Covid-19

With an increasing number of states, provinces and even whole countries closing institutions of learning as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic, almost 70% of the world’s students are not attending school. Commonwealth of Learning stands ready to share its expertise and resources to enable stakeholders to keep the doors of learning open for all.

https://www.col.org/resources/keeping-doors-learning-open-covid-19

How the National University of Singapore is teaching remotely

While universities are being forced to adapt en masse, remote learning is here to stay, believes Tommy Hor, Chief IT Officer of NUS. “We envisage this is a growing trend moving ahead.” Hor discussed with GovInsider how the university continues to run classes amidst Covid-19 and ensure they are secure.

https://govinsider.asia/smart-gov/tommy-hor-national-university-of-singapore-teaching-remotely

How the pandemic will change universities

In this last of a four-part series, Senior Education Correspondent Sandra Davie talks to Singapore Management University president Lily Kong on the changes that the coronavirus pandemic will bring to universities. What happens post-pandemic – are SMU students likely to continue to do most of their courses online? This is a key question especially now that students have developed a familiarity and perhaps even a preference for online learning. SMU president Lily Kong says it is unlikely, though not that she does not see the benefits of the online medium.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/education/how-the-pandemic-will-change-universities

Covid-19 and the education sector

Teachers have had to adapt to a world of almost universal distance education as nearly 94% of all learners have faced school closures. Most teachers and their organisations have embraced this challenge, although in many developing countries teachers lack the skills and equipment to provide distance education effectively. As governments consider reopening school as confinement measures are relaxed, the safety of learners and teachers should be paramount, and social distancing of learners, access to personal protective equipment, and regular virus testing will be key.

https://www.ilo.org/sector/Resources/publications/WCMS_742025/lang--en/index.htm

Commentary: Covid-19’s education revolution – where going digital is just half the battle

Never before has there been a concerted global effort to digitise education. Educators, parents and students have to find a way to use this outbreak to reimagine education, including what and how our kids learn, says Crystal Lim-Lange.

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/commentary/covid-19-coronavirus-education-digital-revolution-transformation-12650974

Education | How will Covid-19 reshape key Australian industries?

Covid-19 has presented the biggest public health threat in a generation and has left entire industries and institutions reeling. In Australia, the impact on universities was severe and immediate as the outbreak occurred at the start of the academic year. In this Q&A the vice-chancellor of Monash University, Professor Margaret Gardner, outlines the primary challenges facing universities and international students, the innovation and resilience that shone through in responding to the crisis and the opportunities that may arise for Australia’s education sector in the longer term.

https://eiuperspectives.economist.com/talent-education/education-how-will-covid-19-reshape-key-australian-industries?utm_campaign=EP2020%20-%20Email%2024a%20-%20NEW%20-%20HTML%20-%2012062020-APAC&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

World Bank Education and Covid-19

Before the outbreak of the global coronavirus pandemic, the world was already dealing with a learning crisis, as evidenced by high numbers of Learning Poverty. With the spread of the coronavirus, the education system is facing a new crisis, as more than 160 countries (as of March 24) mandate some form of school closures impacting at least 1.5 billion children and youth.  Extended school closures may cause not only loss of learning in the short term, but also further loss in human capital and diminished economic opportunities over the long term.

https://www.worldbank.org/en/data/interactive/2020/03/24/world-bank-education-and-covid-19

Teaching, technology, and teacher education during the Covid-19 pandemic: Stories from the field

The Covid-19 pandemic significantly impacted education, forcing teachers and teacher educators into emergency, remote instruction. While there were noted challenges, there also were global success stories of innovation in preparing current and future teachers. This AACE and SITE-published, open access eBook contains 133 chapters with over 850 pages documenting best practices, strategies, and efforts by teacher educators, professional developers, researchers, and practitioners. It is divided into seven sections that address pedagogy, collaboration, field experiences, preservice education methods, professional development, digital tools, and equity issues. Chapters are presented as innovations with supporting materials that could be easily replicated or studied.

http://www.learntechlib.org/p/216903

Covid-19 and student learning in the United States: The hurt could last a lifetime

The US education system was not built to deal with extended shutdowns like those imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic. Teachers, administrators, and parents have worked hard to keep learning alive; nevertheless, these efforts are not likely to provide the quality of education that’s delivered in the classroom. Even more troubling is the context: the persistent achievement disparities across income levels and between white students and students of black and Hispanic heritage. School shutdowns could not only cause disproportionate learning losses for these students – compounding existing gaps – but also lead more of them to drop out. This could have long-term effects on these children’s long-term economic well-being and on the US economy as a whole.

https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-sector/our-insights/covid-19-and-student-learning-in-the-united-states-the-hurt-could-last-a-lifetime

Lessons learnt, opportunities seized amid Covid-19: Ong Ye Kung

The Covid-19 pandemic may have wrought havoc elsewhere, but it has put e-learning on the fast lane. Each secondary school student was to get a personal learning device by 2028. MOE has decided to make sure they all get a personal laptop or tablet by the end of next year. In his Annual Workplan Seminar speech to school leaders released yesterday, Education Minister Ong Ye Kung explained how the move to HBL during the circuit-breaker period prompted MOE to bring the National Digital Literacy Programme forward.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/education/lessons-learnt-opportunities-seized-amid-covid-19-ong-ye-kung

Routledge experts on education

We know how resilient and creative you are having to be during these unprecedented times, so our authors are here to help you with any lingering questions or issues you may be facing. In these carefully selected, free resources, our experts share quick tips to help you navigate new and challenging circumstances in your teaching, in your student’s lives, and in your own personal activities. These accessible, short videos (around 3 minutes in length) cover topics from self-care tips, to advice on supporting students’ mental health, to ideas for remote learning, including best practices for student engagement. We hope these tools help you continue to succeed as you adapt to a changing world.

https://routledgetextbooks.com/textbooks/askanexpert/education/default.php?utm_source=individuals&utm_medium=banner&utm_campaign=B004753_te1_1au_1aj_d717_teachingonlinevideoproject

Education post-Covid-19: Customised blended learning is urgently needed

Many well-meaning education benefactors and commentators in South Africa have expressed that in the light of the Covid-19 pandemic online self-guided learning could solve some of the current teaching problems and address the educational backlog. What learners need, the reasoning goes, is to get free Internet access to educational support materials on offer online. When used by a trained teacher, this approach can add valuable new dimensions to the learning process. It can allow learners to work at their own pace and teachers to fill content gaps.

https://theconversation.com/education-post-covid-19-customised-blended-learning-is-urgently-needed-138647

How Covid-19 is transforming Chinese education

China’s education industry is an important component of its tertiary sector. The industry has been adversely affected by the Covid-19 outbreak, arousing extensive societal attention and discussion. Complaints during this period have primarily been about the poor quality of some online classes, the low ratings garnered by some learning apps, the cancellation of major exams, and the stress over searching for and finding suitable jobs. Given the outbreak’s tremendous and profound impact on the market’s landscape and dynamics, Oliver Wyman here summarises the implications to the industry’s different sub-segments and the potential changes to customer behaviour, so as to highlight key market trends and identify segmental opportunities during this critical time. https://www.oliverwyman.com/content/dam/oliver-wyman/v2/publications/2020/March/how-covid-19-is-transforming-chinese-education.pdf

How Covid-19 is driving a long-overdue revolution in education

While each level of education faces its unique challenges, it is the higher education segment that may end up, by necessity, triggering a learning revolution. Universities are distinctive in that their students are both old enough to handle the rigours of online work and technologically savvy enough to navigate new platforms. The real challenge lies for the institutions in which they have enrolled. Can traditional, campus-based universities adapt by choosing the right technologies and approaches for educating and engaging their students? The successes and failures that unfold should give us all a better grasp of what is possible.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/05/how-covid-19-is-sparking-a-revolution-in-higher-education 

Schools, skills, and learning: The impact of Covid-19 on education

The global lockdown of education institutions is going to cause major (and likely unequal) interruption in students’ learning; disruptions in internal assessments; and the cancellation of public assessments for qualifications or their replacement by an inferior alternative. This column discusses what can be done to mitigate these negative impacts.

https://voxeu.org/article/impact-covid-19-education

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed education forever. This is how.

With this sudden shift away from the classroom in many parts of the globe, some are wondering whether the adoption of online learning will continue to persist post-pandemic, and how such a shift would impact the worldwide education market.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/04/coronavirus-education-global-covid19-online-digital-learning

Education: From disruption to recovery

Most governments around the world have temporarily closed educational institutions in an attempt to contain the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. These nationwide closures are impacting over 60% of the world’s student population. Several other countries have implemented localised closures impacting millions of additional learners. UNESCO is supporting countries in their efforts to mitigate the immediate impact of school closures, particularly for more vulnerable and disadvantaged communities, and to facilitate the continuity of education for all through remote learning.

https://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse

How is Covid-19 impacting higher education?

The Covid-19 pandemic has left no aspect of life untouched. Higher education institutions, often and rightly seen as the harbingers of the future, have risen to the new challenges posed by the pandemic in various ways. In this special issue of HESB, we invite distinguished academics to discuss how global and local institutions are coping and adapting, and how higher education institutions might look in a post Covid-19 world.

https://headfoundation.org/HESB8

No longer the “policy police”: How the coronavirus is reshaping HR

How times have changed. Now colleges and universities are looking at not only historic layoffs but also the possibility of permanent closure. And with nearly everyone working from a basement couch or a dining-room table, support services for employees have been transformed in a scramble to deal with connectivity issues and work–life balance. For HR offices in higher education, those trends – and more disruptions to come – could prove especially challenging. HR offices in higher-ed – “pits of bureaucracy,” some complain – are too often at the edges of decisions about work-force planning on campus, HR officials say.

https://www.chronicle.com/article/No-Longer-the-Policy/248813?key=LwO6j3K0mIGHYkT3aRWpxBpH4afIMFUPXgbb7m1B90dhgm45pVTLtpxi2hREfWy9RzNHeVFLT1d1bEEwNERvaXpQQ0dmR3dlcU1Wc0NhS1E4SFMzN0RBeENvUQ

10 educational technology solutions for Covid-19 out-of-school children

The Covid-19 global pandemic is creating a global learning crisis in addition to a global health crisis. 82% of the world’s learners are no longer in traditional schooling or education programmes and UNESCO is recommending online learning and education technology to reach learners remotely. All Children Reading: A Grand Challenge for Development developed a list of nine ACR GCD-funded solutions to respond to educational needs during the global Covid-19 Digital Response. I’ve added a 10th edutech solution. Each solution is available for free in multiple languages and, once downloaded, does not require a continuous Internet connection. MOEs, educational development organisations and parents can leverage these tools to support children’s educational needs during school closures.

https://www.ictworks.org/educational-technology-solutions-covid19-response/#.Xr4NdC97GMI

4 ways Covid-19 could change how we educate future generations

For a while now, educators around the world have been talking about the need to rethink how we educate future generations. This might just be the disruption that the sector needed to get us all to rethink how we educate, and question what we need to teach and what we are preparing our students for. So, as we educators grapple with the new ways of communicating with our students away from our classrooms and lecture theatres, it is a good time to reflect on how this disruptive crisis can help us define what learning should look like for Generations Z, Alpha and beyond.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/4-ways-covid-19-education-future-generations

What’s next for schools after coronavirus? Here are 5 big issues and opportunities

No schools, no exams, more online learning and parents in Covid-19 lockdown with their kids. People are responding heroically. Some parents are WFH, others have lost their jobs and teachers are creating an entire new way of doing their jobs – not to mention the kids themselves, stuck inside without their friends. Somehow, we will get through this. When we do, how will things look when school starts again? From communication with these leaders, and drawing on my (the author’s) project team’s expertise in educational leadership and large-scale change, here are five big and lasting issues and opportunities that we anticipate will surface once school starts again.

https://theconversation.com/whats-next-for-schools-after-coronavirus-here-are-5-big-issues-and-opportunities-135004

Startling disparities in digital learning emerge as Covid-19 spreads: UN education agency

With most of the world’s students now at home due to Covid-19, the pandemic is revealing startling divides in digitally based distance learning, data from the UN education and cultural agency, UNESCO, and partners has revealed.

https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/04/1062232

Covid-19 response

The Education Department of the Council of Europe is adapting to the current situation. In this section of our website, we present the actions taken to address the challenges faced. You will find here relevant information including our response to the crisis, good practices from our member states, the Council of Europe education standards and new and existing education resources addressing the current challenges that can be used by teachers, other education professionals and the general public.

https://www.coe.int/en/web/education/covid-19

Coping with Covid-19: International higher education in Europe

What has been the impact so far of Covid-19 on international education, and how are higher education institutions responding to these unprecedented new challenges? Based on over 800 survey responses from practitioners across the European Higher Education Area, “Coping with Covid-19: International higher education in Europe” analyses the impact of coronavirus on mobility, campus culture and more.

https://www.eaie.org/our-resources/library/publication/Research-and-trends/Coping-with-COVID-19--International-higher-education-in-Europe.html

Quality education for all during Covid-19

Health officials are currently taking steps to prevent the introduction and spread of Covid-19 into communities across the world. The pandemic situation is affecting the lives of many students, families & communities. This special collection is compiling stories and solutions from schools around the world doing their best for students.

https://hundred.org/en/collections/quality-education-for-all-during-coronavirus

Covid-19 and education in emergencies

Armed conflicts, forced displacement, climate change induced disasters and protracted crises have disrupted the education of 75 million children and youth globally. And that number is growing in an unprecedented way with the spread of Covid-19.  Education has been hit particularly hard by the Covid-19 pandemic with 1.53 billion learners out of school and 184 country-wide school closures, impacting 87.6% of the world’s total enrolled learners. Drop-out rates across the globe are likely to rise as a result of this massive disruption to education access.

https://www.educationcannotwait.org/covid-19

UNESCO’s support: Educational response to Covid-19

In the context of widespread school closures to slow the spread of Covid-19, UNESCO is working with ministries of education in affected and concerned countries to ensure continued learning for all children and youth through alternative channels.

https://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse/support

Remote learning, EdTech & Covid-19

Large-scale, national efforts to utilize technology in support of remote learning, distance education and online learning during the Covid-19 pandemic are emerging and evolving quickly. This page attempts to curate useful resources and publish related documents collected and prepared by the World Bank's EdTech team in support of national dialogues with policymakers around the world. Other institutions are welcome to redistribute any of what appears below. Updates are frequently posted on this page.

https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/edutech/brief/edtech-covid-19

This is how to going to school is going to be from now on

This short video by Cultura Colectiva + shows how China is tackling the reopening of schools. The measures taken by schools are entirely up to each individual school.

https://www.facebook.com/1381450335205759/posts/3647771788573591/?vh=e

Prioritise play when schools reopen, say mental health experts

Child mental health experts have urged the government to prioritise children’s play and socialising with friends over formal lessons and academic progress when schools in England reopen and lockdown restrictions are eased. They say they are “extremely concerned” about the impact of the lockdown and more than six weeks without face-to-face play with peers on child mental health. They are calling on ministers to ensure that play is at the top of newly permitted activities.

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2020/may/07/prioritise-play-when-schools-reopen-say-mental-health-experts-coronavirus-lockdown?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1588857952

Reopening schools in the context of Covid-19: Health and safety guidelines from other countries

Schools across the US cancelled in-person classes beginning in March 2020 to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Policymakers and school leaders are making plans to reopen schools for the next academic year, and some are preparing to do so sooner. This brief compiles preliminary information on health and safety guidelines from five countries that have continued or reopened schools during the Covid-19 outbreak: China, Denmark, Norway, Singapore and Taiwan. https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/sites/default/files/product-files/Reopening_Schools_COVID-19_BRIEF.pdf

Getting the next phase of remote learning right in higher education

For higher-education institutions, the first frantic rush of transitioning from in-person to remote learning is behind them – not that the process is complete. Most faculty members have managed to establish new routines. Others are still working out how to teach courses designed for a physical classroom through online platforms that they may still be learning to master. Because of the coronavirus, American colleges and universities are entering new educational territory. Here are some practical ways to deliver excellence.

https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-sector/our-insights/getting-the-next-phase-of-remote-learning-right-in-higher-education#

School-system priorities in the age of coronavirus

Addressing these inequities in a remote-learning environment is a complex challenge. School systems need to adapt across many dimensions, while serving students from a variety of backgrounds. Vulnerability comes in many forms; low-income students, immigrant students, ethnic or religious minorities, students with special needs, students in remote rural areas, and those in risky home situations all need tailored strategies.

https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-sector/our-insights/school-system-priorities-in-the-age-of-coronavirus

Covid-19’s education revolution – Where going digital is just half the battle

Right now, 90% of the world’s learners – more than 1.5 billion students – have been affected by school closures, according to OECD estimates. Educators, parents and students have to find a way to use this outbreak to reimagine education, including what and how our kids learn.

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/commentary/covid-19-coronavirus-education-digital-revolution-transformation-12650974

Tuning in, turning outward: Cultivating compassionate leadership in a crisis

A “landscape-scale crisis” such as Covid-19 strips leadership back to its most fundamental element: making a positive difference in people’s lives. An imperative for leaders in such times is to demonstrate compassionate leadership and to make dealing with the unfolding human tragedy the first priority.

https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/tuning-in-turning-outward-cultivating-compassionate-leadership-in-a-crisis

From virus-slaying air purifiers to delivery robots, how university inventions are fighting Covid-19

With the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) sweeping across continents and affecting many millions, health authorities, policymakers and scientists, innovators around the world are racing to invent ways to contain the further spread of the virus. It is our unwavering belief that universities are – and should always be – contributing to this collective fight against this and future severe and potentially long-lasting public health crises.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/how-can-universities-fight-coronavirus/

Covid-19 and social distancing do not need to end college internships

Even as the continuing Covid-19 pandemic looks poised to cancel traditional college internships over the next 3–4 months, a new resource guide for colleges, students and employers developed by University of Wisconsin−Madison education researcher Matthew Hora points the way to a host of web-based alternatives for these important on-the-job learning opportunities.

https://www.wcer.wisc.edu/news/detail/covid-19-and-social-distancing-do-not-need-to-end-college-internships

How will Covid-19 impact global education?

More than 60 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America have announced or implemented school and university closures. Indeed, the impact of Covid-19 on education has gone far beyond school closure. What is its impact on the global education landscape? How will it change the future of education in the aftermath?

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2020-03-16/How-will-COVID-19-impact-global-education--OTZKvx8tbO/index.html

National wealth does not guarantee education equality, UNICEF report says

The report focuses on two child-centred indicators of inequality: At preschool level the indicator is the percentage of students enrolled in organised learning one year before the official age for entering primary school; the indicator for both primary school (Grade 4, around age 10) and secondary school (age 15) is the gap in reading scores between the lowest- and highest-performing students. The ranking at age 15 is the lead indicator in the report because this represents the level of inequality towards the end of compulsory education.

https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/national-wealth-does-not-guarantee-education-equality-unicef-report-says

International education and Covid-19 – Insights from TALIS

As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, so do the risks we face. The Covid-19 pandemic doesn’t stop at national borders, and it affects people regardless of nationality, level of education, income or gender. But that may not be true for its consequences, which are likely to hit the most vulnerable hardest. This crisis exposes the many inequities in our education systems – from the broadband and computers needed for online education, through the supportive environments needed to focus on learning, up to our failure to attract talented teachers to the most challenging classrooms. But as these inequities are amplified in this time of crisis, this moment also holds the possibility that we won’t return to the inequitable status quo when things return to “normal”. We have agency, and it is the nature of our collective and systemic responses to the disruptions that will determine how we are affected by them. Our behaviour changes the system, and only mindful behaviour can avoid a breakdown of our education systems.

https://www.teachermagazine.com.au/columnists/andreas-schleicher/international-education-and-covid-19-insights-from-talis

OECD reveals gap in Gen Z's career expectations

Are Gen Z-ers aware of the changing nature of work? While the corporate world prepares for the impact of technology and automation on the way we work, Gen Z students remain worryingly ill-informed, found OECD’s latest study. Are leaders doing enough to prepare them for the future of work?

https://www.hcamag.com/asia/news/general/oecd-reveals-gap-in-gen-zs-career-expectations/212332

A framework to guide an education response to the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020

This report aims at supporting education decision making to develop and implement effective education responses to the Covid-19 pandemic. The report explains why the necessary social isolation measures will disrupt school-based education for several months in most countries around the world. Absent an intentional and effective strategy to protect opportunity to learn during this period, this disruption will cause severe learning losses for students. The report proposes that leaders of education systems and organisations develop plans for the continuation of education through alternate modalities, during the period of necessary social isolation. It offers a framework of areas to be covered by such plans.

https://www.hm.ee/sites/default/files/framework_guide_v1_002_harward.pdf

This is how digital literacy can transform education

What could that education look like and how do we get there? In this excerpt from my recently released book, Beyond the Valley, I argue for two major interventions: firstly, changing technology education to tie it more closely to political, economic, cultural, and humanist thinking; and secondly, opening up what we mean by design and digital literacy and how we teach this.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/why-is-digital-literacy-important

Covid-19 educational disruption and response

Most governments around the world have temporarily closed educational institutions in an attempt to contain the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. UNESCO is supporting countries in their efforts to mitigate the immediate impact of school closures, particularly for more vulnerable and disadvantaged communities, and to facilitate the continuity of education for all through remote learning.

https://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse

Tackling coronavirus (Covid‑19): Contributing to a global effort

What are the impacts and consequences of the coronavirus pandemic on our lives and our societies – and what are some of the solutions we can find to boost our healthcare systems, secure our businesses, maintain our jobs and education, and stabilise financial markets and economies?

https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/en

3 ways the coronavirus pandemic could reshape education

These risk-control decisions have led millions of students into temporary “homeschooling” situations, especially in some of the most heavily impacted countries, like China, South Korea, Italy, and Iran. These changes have certainly caused a degree of inconvenience, but they have also prompted new examples of educational innovation. Although it is too early to judge how reactions to Covid-19 will affect education systems around the world, there are signs suggesting that it could have a lasting impact on the trajectory of learning innovation and digitisation. We follow three trends that could hint at future transformations.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/3-ways-coronavirus-is-reshaping-education-and-what-changes-might-be-here-to-stay

Covid-19 and school closures: What can countries learn from past emergencies?

As the Covid-19 pandemic spreads around the world, and across every state in the US, school systems are shutting their doors. To date, the education community has largely focused on the different strategies to continue schooling, including lively discussions on the role of education technology versus distribution of printed paper packets. But there has been relatively little discussion about how to take advantage of the know-how and good practice developed from years of work in the humanitarian and global development sectors.

https://www.brookings.edu/research/covid-19-and-school-closures-what-can-countries-learn-from-past-emergencies

Covid-19's staggering impact on global education

Close to a billion people are still locked down after the coronavirus outbreak brought life around the world to a virtual standstill. The pandemic is expected to have enormous economic consequences and it is also having a devastating impact on global education. According to the latest figures released by UNESCO, some 1.3 billion learners around the world were not able to attend school or university as of March 23, 2020.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/infographic-covid19-coronavirus-impact-global-education-health-schools

How Covid-19 is interrupting children’s education

Online learning has clear potential. Educational technology powered by artificial intelligence can help children in poor countries with iffy schools – supposing they have Internet access. In 2018 researchers found that after 4.5 months of using an Indian app called Mindspark, which tests basic language and maths skills, children made more progress in these areas than those in the control group. But the success of such initiatives relies on preparation and organisation, not sudden scrambles to teach existing curriculums to entire populations of students in the midst of a pandemic.

https://www.economist.com/international/2020/03/19/how-covid-19-is-interrupting-childrens-education

Links to Covid-19 Resources

Copyright Clearance Center recognises publishing and information organisations for contributing to the common good by providing access to relevant science, news and educational content related to Covid-19 and the novel coronavirus causing it.

http://www.copyright.com/coronavirus-covid-19

Closure of universities due to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19): Impact on education and mental health of students and academic staff

In light of rising concern about the current Covid-19 pandemic, a growing number of universities across the world have either postponed or cancelled all campus events such as workshops, conferences, sports and other activities. Universities are taking intensive measures to prevent and protect all students and staff members from the highly infectious disease. Faculty members are already in the process of transitioning to online teaching platforms. In this review, the author will highlight the potential impact of the terrible Covid-19 outbreak on the education and mental health of students and academic staff.

https://www.cureus.com/articles/30110-closure-of-universities-due-to-coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19-impact-on-education-and-mental-health-of-students-and-academic-staff

How will Covid-19 affect equity in education?

The Covid-19 pandemic has shifted the delivery of instruction in K–12 and institutions of higher education to almost exclusively online. It is imperative that educators and school officials continue to deliver messages of positivity to the school community and ensure that there is equity in the delivery of education. This is the perfect opportunity to educate students about the importance of equality, anti-discrimination, investigate harassment and bullying complaints promptly, and prohibit xenophobia.

https://www.americanbar.org/groups/litigation/committees/diversity-inclusion/articles/2020/covid-19-coronavirus-equality-education

Online learning gets its moment due to Covid-19 pandemic: Here's how education will change

Digital learning goes mainstream in a hurry and that's going to upend current education practices, models, and processes going forward. It is online learning's big moment and education is about to be revamped just as much the industries that are going to remote work due to Covid-19.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/online-learning-gets-its-moment-due-to-covid-19-pandemic-heres-how-education-will-change

Educating despite the Covid-19 outbreak: Lessons from Singapore

While there was talk about embracing technology-enhanced learning at the Singapore Institute of Technology, it was a different story when all classes of more than 50 students had to be converted to e-learning in the middle of the semester. At the back of their minds, the faculty members were also ready for full e-learning to take place if the situation worsened, but the reality was different. Taking all large classes online quickly required clear communication and a whole university approach.

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/blog/educating-despite-covid-19-outbreak-lessons-singapore

Schools, skills, and learning: The impact of Covid-19 on education

The global lockdown of education institutions is going to cause major (and likely unequal) interruption in students’ learning; disruptions in internal assessments; and the cancellation of public assessments for qualifications or their replacement by an inferior alternative. This column discusses what can be done to mitigate these negative impacts.

https://voxeu.org/article/impact-covid-19-education

School closure and management practices during coronavirus outbreaks including Covid-19: A rapid systematic review

Data from the SARS outbreak in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Singapore suggest that school closures did not contribute to the control of the epidemic. Modelling studies of SARS produced conflicting results. Recent modelling studies of Covid-19 predict that school closures alone would prevent only 2–4% of deaths, much less than other social distancing interventions. Policy makers need to be aware of the equivocal evidence when considering school closures for Covid-19, and that combinations of social distancing measures should be considered.

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanchi/article/PIIS2352-4642(20)30095-X/fulltext

What does “crisis” education look like?

At the global level, news about Brexit and the coming United States elections were prominently featured on headlines. More recently, we were alerted to the Covid-19 crisis affecting many countries around the world. Further study is needed to develop a new approach and to determine the effects of new pedagogical methods with respect to social learning around extreme natural events.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/10382046.2020.1730095?needAccess=true

How is Covid-19 shaping the higher education sector?

Covid-19 has created a new normal for the higher education sector, revolutionising the online learning landscape, reshaping application processes, and refreshing crisis management strategies. The global higher education sector has been dramatically transformed as a result of it. Learn more about the impact of this crisis and the QS exclusive survey findings in the article.  

https://www.qs.com/how-is-covid-19-shaping-the-higher-education-sector

Covid-19 could be a curse for graduates but a boon for universities

The Covid-19 crisis means a huge downturn in economic activity. A few sectors are growing, as people use more technology and swap to bigger supermarket shops, but most organisations of all shapes and sizes are taking a massive hit. We seem to be heading inevitably into a deep global recession. A post-coronavirus recession could drive higher university enrolment and enhance human capital.

https://www.timeshighereducation.com/opinion/covid-19-could-be-curse-graduates-boon-universities

Graduate advising in the time of Covid-19

Graduate school was hard enough before the plague. Ph.D. students already live with more uncertainty than most of the academic population. They engage in a course of study of long but indeterminate length. Many don’t finish. And their career prospects were decidedly unclear even before Covid-19 upended their already-unsettled world.

https://www.chronicle.com/article/Graduate-Advising-in-the-Time/248506

How will higher education have changed after Covid-19?

This is an article that will attempt to calculate what the worldwide economic and higher education landscape will look like after the threat of Covid-19 has dissipated; what remains. Recognising that it is unwise to make predictions about the future, I nevertheless believe there are at least five residuals that will remain after COVID-19 is no longer a major threat to human life and an economic and education disruptor.

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20200324065639773

Teaching and learning after Covid-19

How will the Covid-19 pandemic alter the future of teaching and learning? Answering that question requires that we first acknowledge some difficult truths. The author shares three predictions for how post-pandemic pedagogy will be altered across the higher education ecosystem.

https://www.insidehighered.com/digital-learning/blogs/learning-innovation/teaching-and-learning-after-covid-19

Covid19: How the coronavirus could transform higher education

In the past weeks there have been daily reports of universities putting all their coursework material online. In some cases, institutions have had to cancel classes for a week to free up capacity as universities around the country grapple with the impacts of Covid-19. The higher education sector now has a choice: revert back to old ways when the Covid-19 challenges are over or use this as a watershed moment for transformative change in higher education. And if so, we could look forward to reconstruction, not return, in four areas.

https://home.kpmg/au/en/home/insights/2020/04/coronavirus-covid-19-education-sector-transformation.html

How Covid-19 is accelerating the disruption of higher education

After Covid-19, some say that nothing will be the same. On the contrary, things will never be more the same, just accelerated. Over the last 2 weeks, the author was asked the same question: What does the world look like “post-corona”?

https://marker.medium.com/the-pandemic-will-reshape-higher-education-c8d3a1a52be8

Low-income students count on finding jobs. But the pandemic has halted their job training.

Danielle Jones was less than 2 months away, she thought, from a degree as a dental hygienist and a license to practice. A few more weeks of scraping tartar and calming jittery patients in Amarillo College’s dentistry clinic, and she’d be starting a career that would alleviate the financial stresses that have weighed heavily on the single mother of three. Covid-19 seemed a distant threat in Amarillo, a rugged city in the Texas Panhandle, hundreds of miles from the state’s major population centres. Then, on 21 March, the pandemic hit home.

https://www.chronicle.com/article/Low-Income-Students-Count-on/248509

Coronavirus: How should US higher education plan for an uncertain future?

With American campuses largely empty of students, higher-education leaders need to shift their thinking to what happens next. In this article, we consider three broad epidemiological and public-health scenarios. All of these represent a degree of economic disruption few adults in the United States have ever experienced.

https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-sector/our-insights/coronavirus-how-should-us-higher-education-plan-for-an-uncertain-future

‘Don’t worry about the class’: How one professor responded to a student with Covid-19 symptoms

The shift to emergency online teaching that has consumed so many professors this semester wasn’t an issue for Melissa A. Wong: She was already teaching online. But she faced a direct effect of the pandemic – one that growing numbers of professors will surely also confront – when a student wrote to say that she was experiencing Covid-19 symptoms and apologised for handing in work late.

https://www.chronicle.com/article/Don-t-Worry-About-the/248475

How would education in Singapore look if there were no need to educate?

The aphorism among optimists these days is that we should never waste a good crisis. Covid-19, the circuit breaker measures and full HBL should give us time to think about things we take for granted. In this spirit, this is as good an opportunity as ever to reconsider schooling.

https://www.todayonline.com/commentary/how-would-Singapore-educate-if-no-need-education-MOE-class

All abstracts were taken from the source material and slightly edited.