Education in COVID Times

Here is a bleak piece of statistic from the Census of India to ponder over. 89% of kids with learning disabilities are enrolled in primary school, while only 8.5% actually go to secondary school, and finally, only 2.3% of the special needs children reach higher secondary. Now consider what would have happened to these numbers amidst the COVID19 backdrop.

The coronavirus pandemic has made education models and regular classes shift abruptly to digital modes. Schools, teachers, parents and children have all been finding it hard to adjust to the new norms of education. There are additional factors like economic, social, legal, and technological issues that are in the way of a child getting the education they deserve. To top it all, the focus of imparting education for children with special abilities has mostly been a low priority item historically.

But amidst this situation, Covid-19 also presents an opportunity to enable inclusion for all children by building common grounds in education through technology-based learning. Deploying e-learning methods is a necessity of the time that we are living in and presents a wonderful opportunity where special educators can reach out to many children simultaneously.

Our immediate challenge is to educate children wherever they are, within the infrastructure and setting they are in. This requires innovation and creativity to enhance remote learning tools, services and education. Students with disabilities are facing barriers on account of the absence of required equipment, access to internet, accessible materials and support necessary to permit them to follow online school programs.

So what can be done to improve these dire situations? Even though the government has recently announced that eVidya platform will cater to learners with visual and hearing impairment, there is no public information that addresses how digital education, including online classroom teaching, will generally be made accessible. The manner in which digital education is being made accessible is outdated and uncoordinated. We need to develop comprehensive guidelines on the accessibility of digital education.

The ministry needs to set up online learning courses which cater to the needs of every child to facilitate learning amidst the nationwide school closures. Upgrading the infrastructure of NGOs around the country and digitally upskilling the staff and teachers to ensure they are able to impart education through the digital medium is also a step in the right direction.

Learners with disabilities constitute a population of about 40 lakh in the age group of 5-19 years, according to Census study of 2011. It is anyone’s guess how much this number would have grown in all these years. If we are worried and exhausted about how our kids are confined to houses and not getting a holistic learning experience in schools we need to ponder over the predicament of children with disability/impairments and are not even sure if there is a new leaf that awaits to blossom in their learning curve. We as society, need to be aware as well as contribute for the betterment of these aspiring souls. As we brace the new normal it is time to turn over a new chapter in the education ecosystem which believes in inclusivity and far wider reach for every child in our society.