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#BTEditorial – Will some students need to forfeit full vacation?

by Barbados Today
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During the course of the COVID-19 pandemic which has disrupted physical classes, we have heard both the Barbados Union of Teachers (BUT) and the Barbados Secondary Teachers’ Union (BSTU) lament that there are students who are way behind in the school syllabus.

Some may say that students being behind is nothing new, as this happened even when face-to-face class was the delivery method for teaching before the pandemic. However, the unions’ concerns became real since there was a significant number of students who just did not adapt to the online school approach.

In some instances, children had no devices or Internet access, while others simply could not adjust to virtual learning. It became a huge challenge for students, parents, and teachers alike.

The Ministry of Education had acknowledged on more than one occasion that there were students who were just not keeping up given the challenges they faced.

The Ministry decided to do a phased, blended approach to the return to the physical classroom in Term 2, and even now in Term 3, there are still students who are not fully engaged physically five days a week.

We understand why, even as we seem to be in another wave of COVID-19 cases.

Both the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health must be commended since there have been no reports of significant COVID-19 outbreaks in schools. The principals, teachers, ancillary staff, and parents must be lauded as well.

This week, in neighbouring Trinidad and Tobago, officials were struggling to keep COVID-19 cases in schools down.

According to the Trinidad Express, as of Thursday, 316 cases were confirmed in 243 schools since the return of physical classes that started on April 19.

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said, though, that a return to lockdowns was not being considered.

He told a press conference: “At this stage of the pandemic, the option of shutting down and keeping people away from work or away from school is not one that is recommended because the long term socio-economic effects are going to be felt for years to come.”

Then on Wednesday, Guyana’s Minister of Education Priya Manickchand said there was a likelihood that schools would remain open throughout July and August as part of efforts to address the learning losses created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

She added that the usual summer break would have to be missed, stressing that the opening of schools might be necessary to cater for the learning loss or gaps that exist because most learners were physically away from school for close to two years.

According to the Guyana Chronicle, Minister Manickchand said that many persons do not fully appreciate the impact that school closures have had on children.

“We have to find ways to ensure that these children get exposed to the hours of education that they need, that we have parents that are interested and their attitudes are right. We may have to work into July-August,” she said.

The Education Minister said that diagnostic assessments have been done to know where learners are academically, relative to where they need to be, so that teachers will know how to engage them in the classroom.

“Those changes are necessary if we’re not to be suffering from the effects of COVID five years from now. What we have seen academically is worrying and parents need to pay attention to what we are asking of them so that they can make sure their children are benefitting from the kind of accelerated learning that we need at this stage,” the Guyana minister said.

The Ministry of Education here announced that Common Entrance Exam is set for Tuesday, July 5, two months later than the usual May. We also know that the Caribbean Examinations Council has pushed back its exams by three weeks, albeit some have said the time is not adequate.

These postponements signal to us that more time is needed for preparation. The reality is students are behind. If that is the case, should we too consider opening schools during July and August in order to facilitate those who are behind? Teaching need not be a five-day week or for the entire vacation period. Can this vacation teaching be sustained enough that some of our students are aided in getting back on track? How possible is this? Would the Ministry be amenable to this? Would the teachers’ unions meet the ministry halfway on this? Will parents do their part?

Reality is, we have to find a way or ways to make up for this deficit created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Whatever decisions are made must take into account the fact that the pandemic is still very much with us as we play catch up in education. We cannot allow an entire generation to lose out simply because we were not vigilant or forward-thinking enough to make a way for them.

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