Re-opening Schools - An Opportunity for Advocacy and Support?

One of the most important – and hotly debated – issues during the pandemic has been access to education for children and young people. Most countries closed schools and universities urgently as part of the lockdown, and then gradually encouraged a return. I was privileged to join the UNESCO Chair in Global Health and Education team in May and June 2020 to analyse their global survey about re-opening schools. IAAH has been working as a partner with this team since Spring 2019.

The value of this survey was to collect perspectives from professionals in the field – first-hand accounts of whether/how schools were re-opening in different countries and the successes and challenges of making this happen. At the time of the survey, COVID-19 had spread through Asia, was particularly rife in Europe but only just penetrating Africa and the Americas. We found that many nations already had access to guidance, even if the return to schools had not yet occurred.

Rapid innovation in remote learning during closure was seen as a great achievement, but there were concerns about widening inequalities for students who had limited access to space, equipment and effective broadband connections. For those who had started to return, there was relief that the infection rate had not significantly increased. Success was reported where stakeholders had worked closely together – teachers and families and local authorities. Absenteeism was significant in many places, with families still cautious about infection risk. The flexibility and adaptability of education professionals was commended but they needed consistent guidance, equipment and empowerment to succeed.

Many countries plan a return for August/September, at the beginning of the new academic year. We may see a repeating pattern of closure and re-opening over the next year as we anticipate at least one more global pandemic wave. Interestingly, the only country that mentioned the supporting role of school nurses during the pandemic was France. Is this an opportunity for adolescent health professionals to connect with local schools as supporters and advocates – now and for the future?

To find out more, please visit the survey results web pages in English or French.

Join the interactive webinar “The COVID-19 pandemic: better aligning education and health” on Monday, 13 July 2020 from 14:00 to 15.00 (CEST). This webinar will be an opportunity to discuss the case for greater alignment between education and health in the perspective of the COVID-19 pandemic with Nicola Gray (UNESCO Chair GHE and IAAH), Sean Slade (ASCD) and Antonia Wulff (Education International).

In this webinar, results of a global survey on the reopening of schools, as well as the new EI Guidance on Reopening Schools and Education Institutions will be presented. The following three questions will be answered:

• What have we learned from the field about the successes and challenges of re-opening schools?
• How is Covid-19 affecting or changing education?
• What is the perspective of the teacher’s profession on the pandemic?

The webinar will be in English with simultaneous translation in French (français) and Spanish (español). More information: https://bit.ly/aligning_education_health.

Link to the webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88486909593 

The webinar will be accessible 15 minutes prior to the start of the session. No registration is required to participate in the webinar. 500 places will be available. This webinar will also be broadcast live on our YouTube channel.

For more information, please click here.