Lessons from COVID-19 in the Education Sector

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The coronavirus took the education sector by surprise and forced it to adjust to online teaching in a short time. What lessons can we learn from this?

Because of the pandemic, both students and educators found it necessary to adapt to online classes quickly. Now, months later, it is time to reflect on what impact COVID-19 has had on education and what lessons can be learned.

First, it is important to observe China’s learning curve because it was the first to enter quarantine.

What can we learn from China?

The case of China has shown that the number of hours that teachers and students spend in front of the screen is not ideal. According to researchers from the University of Peking, 15 to 30 minutes are more than enough to have a productive session, as online lessons need much concentration during classes, and this can exhaust both the educator and the student. However, the average number of hours spent online by both students and teachers in China is three hours. The Guangdong Department of Education released a guide about how to make courses last 20 minutes. They recommend not only focusing on the screen but also assigning practice activities to reduce fatigue.

Another problem that has been accentuated in China during the pandemic is the gap in digital access. Not all students have access to the technology needed to connect to online classes, so in February, China’s Ministry of Education prohibited introducing a new curriculum until the end of the semester. At the same time, it encouraged teachers to focus on entertainment and the mental and physical health of students. The Department ruled that by April 13, schools could begin a new online curriculum.

The third lesson that can be learned from China is how important is to support teachers. The Yew Wah International School of Education in Guangzhou, for example, focused on supporting collaboration among the teachers and allowing them to experiment. Its educators worked as a team to open an online learning platform in just one week. They are in constant communication, sharing ideas, and resolving questions and concerns, which the students took as an example of collaboration.

The next lesson learned from this country is the importance of communicating with the families. Online learning is a window into the classroom, so it is essential to let the families express their opinions and feel heard. Following the example of the Yew Wah school, the institution interviewed families after ten days of online classes to learn the views and general sentiments of the parents. The survey resulted in useful ideas and suggestions, such as the duration of online sessions. After the study, the sessions were adjusted to 10 minutes in front of the screen and 20 minutes of asynchronous activities.

But what about the rest of the world? What other lessons can be learned from this pandemic?

Lessons learned during the pandemic

Engage the families

Katy Farber, an educator with more than 20 years of experience and author of three books on education, emphasizes that families should be included in the educational process. Because they are now more involved in their children’s education, they have a lot to contribute, and educators and staff should value their opinions and support.

Farber says that another important lesson from this pandemic is that the teaching should be more flexible and adaptable to what the student needs. Every day, adults, children, and adolescents around the world are physically and emotionally affected by the pandemic. The learning process can be affected by these factors.

It is important to note that we are experiencing a global health crisis that impacts us in every aspect of our lives. Therefore, setting inflexible teaching schedules is not the most practical approach. Students must have the opportunity to access the material at different times and ways that best suit their particular situation.

The importance of mental health

Another lesson that quarantine has taught us is the importance of focusing on mental health. Because the world is going through a turbulent and traumatic time collectively, it is easier to talk about isolation, the emotions this has provoked, and how each person copes with the situation differently. This openness should remain after the pandemic, regardless of what education looks like in the future. Every new educational model or policy should incorporate the mental health not only of students but also that of the professors and the non-academic and support staff, developing strategies that benefit their psychological well-being.

According to Farber, we must understand that we are a community, which means that every person is responsible for the other. The quarantine has caused many people to sacrifice essential events, their social lives, their work, and everything else to prevent contagion. These kinds of attitudes demonstrate that we are all connected, and that collective actions are vital and have a significant influence on the health and well-being of the entire community. The education of the future must take from this and focus on fostering responsibility in students so that they become members committed to their community who know how to work collectively.

On the other hand, the World Economic Forum also unveiled lessons learned from the pandemic. The agency recognizes that the global education system goes back more than 200 years and often does not focus on the emotional well-being of students. As a consequence of the pandemic, anxiety, uncertainty, fear, and feelings of isolation have increased, so it is important to focus on providing support to the students and allowing them to connect informally, either by chat or videoconference during the online classes, the World Economic Forum notes.

Also, they recognize that there is a significant technological gap, as not all students have access to the technology needed to take their classes online. The pandemic has exacerbated this inequality, so governments and schools must unite to build an infrastructure that ensures minimizing this gap.

Lessons for Higher Education

According to Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a British company that specializes in education and studies abroad, there are five key lessons that the coronavirus has left for higher education:

Online platforms are key: Due to the pandemic, many institutions were forced to move their courses to the online environment, using learning and administrative platforms such as BlackBoard or Canvas. Th
is technology allows the teacher to upload resources, teach virtual classes, and track their students. The CEO of Perlego, a digital library, notes that there was a 300% increase in the queries from higher education and educational institutions seeking to move to online learning. This sudden increase in demand reflects the importance of institutions to keep current with online platforms and continuously train their teachers to take advantage of them. According to QS, several Arab countries had rejected online education in the past in favor of traditional methods. This resulted in many problems at the start of the pandemic due to their lack of preparedness.
The value of international mobility and partnerships: Now, educational institutions have realized the importance of being interconnected globally. Many exchange students faced the struggle to return to their countries because of borders closed to stop the spread of the virus. This resulted in several universities, such as the University of Melbourne, having to come to the rescue of their international students to help them return to their home countries. Not only international programs have been affected but also the research projects. Many researchers have been forced to stop their research, as is the case of Richard Lenski. He has been investigating the growth of Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria populations for 32 years. For its part, QS points out that those universities with good international connections will find it easier to return to the new normal, including the fields of research.
The importance of considering nature: Due to quarantine, access to outdoors is limited, resulting in many people coming to appreciate it. Universities need to foster in their academic communities the link between productivity, consumption, and nature. Sunlight, for example, has a significant impact on the ability to work effectively, according to studies. In addition to improving the mental state, it helps a person sleep, strengthens their immune system and alertness, and leads to happier and more productive people.
Valuing the community: It is normal to feel isolated by being away from family, friends, classmates, and teachers. Still, we must remember that spending time with other people is related to happiness. The pandemic has helped people recognize that they are part of a community and the importance of staying in touch with each other. Universities should focus on maintaining constant communication with their educators, collaborators, and students, continuously updating them on what is happening and encouraging them to take advantage of technological tools to connect with other people.
Have up-to-date technology: Having digital platforms and the right technical equipment will not only help quick movements to the online environment but also support the administrative aspects. It is vital for educational institutions to continually review whether their platforms or technologies have become obsolete or could prevent them from responding effectively in the event of a crisis like that of the coronavirus.

What will the return to school look like in the “new normal”?

Although the school year is ending in many parts of the world, we should begin to question what will happen in August or September, the months in which various countries around the world plan to reopen schools. Faced with the possibility of a return to face-to-face classes, educational leaders should ask many questions before opening their campuses. The World Economic Forum states that they must examine whether they are willing to change the curricula, the educational model, and even the schedules to ensure that students can adapt to the “new normal” in a way that they can concentrate and participate in class without the fear of contagion.

On the other hand, the pandemic has unleashed a crisis of anxiety, fear, and feelings of isolation in the students, so educators and academic staff are needed to collaborate in building a sense of community through remote learning. This effort should remain after the return to face-to-face classes. The World Economic Forum even invites educators to question whether they are willing to give them opportunities to get to know each other and connect better and share their feelings in a safe environment. This can be done by creating specific spaces or times to talk about their mental health and training teachers on this topic.

According to OECD data, most governments invest only between 2% and 4.5% of their gross domestic product on education. It will be important to increase investment in education because teachers’ salaries in many countries are low and so also the investment in professional development programs for the teaching staff. Regarding the latter, teacher training will be essential so that they have the necessary knowledge and tools to adapt to the changes that are to come.

It will also be of paramount importance to ensure that all students have access to technology that has become vital to online learning during the pandemic. This will not be easy. “It will be difficult to level the playing field completely, but how much effort will be made to make it more equitable?” asks the World Economic Forum report.

Without a doubt, COVID-19 has come to shake the world. Now it will be a question of analyzing the lessons that have been learned during this time and determining what will have to change beginning now. It is time to invest more in education. It is the moment to talk more openly about the importance of mental health and the well-being of students, teachers, and non-academic staff. To ponder whether the assessment systems we have used up to now will continue to ensure active learning.

Finally, although the pandemic and quarantine arrived without warning and educational institutions had to adapt quickly to ensure academic continuity, we must take advantage of this crisis to pause, analyze, and reflect, and then rethink education that we have known until now.

Paulette Delgado

This article from Observatory of the Institute for the Future of Education may be shared under the terms of the license CC BY-NC-SA 4.0