5 Ways Companies Can Support Education During COVID-19
The outbreak of COVID-19 has presented a sobering lesson in education, highlighting the extent to which unequal access to technology and the internet restricts distance learning opportunities for children – even in the most developed countries. Imagine the impact in countries like Somalia or South Sudan, where only 10% and 17% of the population can access the internet.
For the past few months, the Global Business Coalition for Education has leveraged the Rapid Education Action (REACT) platform to identify local-level needs and mobilize corporate resources and expertise to provide high-tech, low-tech, and no-tech solutions to minimize the long-term impacts on the next generation.
Now, we are calling on the business community to support these COVID-19 education response efforts in five key areas.
While these needs areas are relevant all around the world, we are working urgently to support the following countries that need immediate support: Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Uganda.
Area 1: Distance Learning
Description: Deliver free access to pre-primary, secondary, and post-secondary digital learning content for subjects like language arts, math, science, coding, and soft skills.
Specific support is needed to:
- Develop, digitalize, and package learning and teaching material in alignment with national curriculums (pre-primary, primary, and secondary).
- Upload content to proprietary distance learning platforms and other online support.
- Enhance the Education Computing Cloud to deliver virtual classes.
- Support the monitoring, assessment, and supervision of learning on distance learning platforms and systems.
Looking for resources? Here is a list of nearly 100 free digital learning tools and resources from our coalition of businesses.
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Area 2: Teacher Training
Description: Equip educators to continue delivering education effectively in a remote setting.
Specific support is needed to:
- Strengthen the capacities of teachers, training institutions, and teacher educators on distance learning techniques.
- Develop instructional materials to support teachers in delivering, monitoring, and assessing distance learning.
- Establish and strengthen digital platforms specifically for teachers and teacher trainees.
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Area 3: Student Connectivity
Description: Connect families to the internet to enable distance learning.
Specific support is needed to:
- Provide internet-connected devices to students, teachers, and learning institutions.
- Provide wireless internet connections to students, teachers, and learning institutions.
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Area 4: Materials Distribution
Description: Print and distribute textbooks and other learning materials to students in remote areas without access to digital infrastructures.
Specific support is needed to:
- Print and distribute teaching and learning materials to teachers and students – especially in hard to reach places.
- Provide education content via devices that do not require internet connection such as disks or external hard drives.
- Monitor the distribution and usage of such teaching and learning materials.
[contact-form-7 id=”14095″][grop_title title_tag=”h2″ title=”Area 5: Content Broadcasting (TV/Radio)” text_align=”text-left” title_color=”#1a70b5″]Description: Support the production and distribution of educational content for television and radio broadcasting.
Specific support is needed to:
- Package and produce materials to be broadcasted by radio and TV.
- Train educators and facilitators in the delivery of radio and TV broadcasting.
- Fund and finance air time to broadcast radio and TV stations.
- Monitor effectiveness and efficiency of distance learning through radio and TV.
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These are immediate needs around the world, but as school systems begin to reopen we anticipate many more ways companies can help schools recover from the impact of Coronavirus. Join our mailing list to receive future updates on the education response to COVID-19.