Opinion: Can’t Education Wait For Schools to Reopen?
In December 2019, the Coronavirus was thought of as a Chinese epidemic that seemed far away from the world. Right now, there’s barely any country that hasn’t been hit by the virus. A lock-down was thereby implemented, schools, churches, bars, hotels and public transport, among others had to temporarily shut down. That’s still the situation across the globe right now. The press and the internet have served as great tools during this period, to educate students at different levels, because it’s totally unpredictable when the virus shall be defeated.
However, it is said that students will go back to school when the Covid-19 vaccine has been found and perhaps, distributed across the world.
The above, however, is contradictory to the different promises that the world leaders have been making while addressing the people. Some leaders promised that schools would open up by May, others by June, and others by September. However, this doesn’t mean that they have unbiased knowledge about the virus. They simply want to reduce the anxiety among their people that badly need answers.
I’ll primarily focus on the more plausible fact, that the global lock-down will be lifted after the vaccine has been discovered. Who discovers the vaccine, who distributes, at what speed, and how long it will take to reach the entire world and finally bring the situation back to normal, are questions that cannot be answered at the moment.
We also have speculations from some people that this global contagion may extend its lifespan to 2021 or 2022 as the world still battles it. This leaves us one single burning question, shall we still be locked down? I mean, schools have to open up soon. We can’t afford to give a red light to education, of all things.
How Education Can Still Go On Amid the Coronavirus Pandemic
I believe in the possibility that education can still push forward, even during this season. Here is how;
-
Online Classes:
Of course, this is the most popular since schools are closed and hiring a private tutor may be as risky as breaking the lockdown rules. Through social media and a few educative websites, learning can be enhanced.
-
Studying from home, examinations from school.
The lock-down came at a time when Africa had not fully adapted to using the internet for education purposes. This means that it’s hard for schools to set examinations and demand they be done and submitted online, and be cocksure that they’ll be free from malpractice.
Therefore, schools could organize and give notes through their websites and prepare for examinations at their venues, where after thorough testing, examinations shall be granted to the candidates.
-
Only boarding schools to operate
This means all students would go to boarding schools, but only on the following conditions.
- Good security; meaning that the school’s security should be tight enough that no intruder slips through it.
- Reliable supply of water. This means the water has to be enough for the school to maintain the culture and practice of washing hands almost all the time.
- In- school accommodation of teachers, meaning that all teachers shall have to stay in the school bounds to prevent themselves from sneaking the virus in.
- High quantity of stored food, that is enough to run the school by feeding all students without need to make endless transactions outside the school, and to ensure safety in times of scarcity and price hike.
Conclusion;
It is necessary that the whole world awaits the time that a cure to the virus shall be manufactured, and the time is right for schools to open up. But as long as the virus is still having dominion over the world, we are supposed to find ways to adapt and live assiduously to evade all possible threats of contraction.
Comments are closed.