UNICEF presents alarming report over countries' readiness to implement remote learning

On Wednesday, a UNICEF report revealed that at least 200 million school children live in 31 low and middle-income countries that are still unprepared to use remote learning in case of future school closures. 102 million of those pupils live in 14 nations that have kept their schools closed for at least half of the COVID-19 outbreak, effectively shutting out many school children from receiving any type of education. The Remote Learning Readiness Index, which covers over 90 per cent of students in low- and lower-middle-income countries, assesses their readiness to deliver remote learning in response to disruptions of in-person education. 

The analysis basically focuses on three aspects — the availability of home-based assets and parents' education status, the implementation of policies and teachers' training, and the education sector's emergency readiness stated by the UN agency. "Even in the midst of a current catastrophe, we know there will be another one, but we are making no efforts to ensure that students have better options the next time they are taken out of the classroom," remarked UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore as mentioned in the official website. Despite being disruptive, the previous 19 months have shown what is possible during and after a pandemic, she stated. "We have been working hard with partners to harness the power of technology and provide learning opportunities for children and young people all over the world," Fore outlined. 

'Many countries faced brunt of the lack of distant learning preparation during pandemic'

According to the UNICEF report, Burundi, Congo, Benin, Cote d'Ivoire, Malawi, Togo, Niger, Madagascar and Ethiopia are among the countries with the greatest need for educational progress. During the COVID-19 pandemic, students living in countries where schools were closed for at least half of the previous 19 months, such as Congo and Madagascar, faced the brunt of the lack of distant learning preparation. The report also emphasises the limitations of remote learning as well as access inequities and warns that the situation is much worse than the data suggests. Learners have faced issues with remote learning globally, especially in higher-middle and high-income nations, according to anecdotal and qualitative data collected beyond the countries assessed. 

The report further revealed that out of 67 nations assessed, 31 are not equipped to deliver remote learning at all levels of education, with students in West and Central Africa being the most affected. Pre-primary education is the most ignored level of education, with many countries failing to implement a policy during COVID-19 lockdowns, leaving the youngest learners behind during their most formative years. The report also outlines other crises, such as those brought on by climate change, that can have a big impact on educational access. 23 out of the 31 countries are also exposed to high or extremely high levels of climate and environmental shocks, putting 196 million schoolchildren at risk of disruptions in the event of an emergency. 

UNICEF working to ensure equal access to high-quality digital learning

It is worth mentioning here that UNICEF has collaborated with public and corporate partners through the Reimagine Education initiative to ensure that all children and young people have equal access to high-quality digital learning. By 2030, the UN agency intends to reach 3.5 billion people with world-class digital learning solutions. Notably, UNICEF is working towards these goals in a variety of ways, including through the Learning Passport, a global learning platform built in collaboration with Microsoft that supports 1.6 million students during school closures. Meanwhile, Giga - a UNICEF and ITU global programme to connect every school and its surrounding community to the internet - is also supporting Reimagine Education.

(Image: ANI/Representative)