As students are making plans to go back to school, school administrators, educators, parents, the government, and private parties must all make efforts to determine the feasibility and practicality for schools to reopen in light of the effects of the COVID-19.
Reopening of schools will require a great deal of planning and preparation, and many expenses that would not have been necessary under normal circumstances may spring up. Stakeholders in the nation have been looking forward to having students and staff back in school, but the process must be done with safety and caution.
These plans and recommendations require a variety of factors that should be taken into consideration. Reopening plans should include: Ensuring members of the public are aware of all reopening plans; Creating safe school environments; Recovering learning loss; Targeting of resources to where they are most needed; and Getting children back to school.
READ ALSO: Updated: Nigerian govt directs schools to reopen October 12
Public trust in the government plays a great role in the successful reopening of schools. The government must ensure that all information is clearly communicated through credible channels. To productively engage members of the public and build the trust needed to design and implement effective reopening plans, the government should:
Prioritize community engagement early to build trust, shape perceptions of risk, and improve responses to government policy.
Share clear, credible, and consistent messaging through multiple accessible channels to reach all groups.
Safe school environment
Maintaining the health and safety of people and environments is one of the most important aspects of reopening. To make the school environment safe, additional health and hygiene measures should be implemented, and school-based nutritional support should be extended to students to strengthen their overall health and well-being.
To provide safe school environments the following should be considered:
• Distribution of waterless
hand sanitizer and/or soap (where handwashing stations are already available)
• Consider school-based
screening for fever and cough, which may reduce risk and improve confidence
• Training of teachers and
other school staff to offer school-based psychosocial support to returning students
• Establishing standard
conditions that must be met before schools are reopened. This will lessen the probability of a new outbreak and boost the confidence of parents, students, and teachers in terms of school safety
• Renovating or installing (as necessary) of hygiene facilities like washrooms and restrooms
Recovering learning loss
To address learning loss, we should consider targeted programs for accelerated recovery and use low-cost coaching and communication methods to support teachers and engage parents. One of the unfortunate byproducts of school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic is the resulting gaps in student learning, especially among the vulnerable members of the society. Schools are tasked with developing and employing learning plans to accelerate and/or mitigate learning loss. When schools reopen after a period of closure, education authorities may want to consider adopting a flexible learning approach.
Here are some suggestions
on how this can be implemented.
• Engage students in accelerated learning interventions to reverse crisis-related learning loss and strengthen future learning trends
• Engage teachers in training and coaching so they can help students catch up, and ensure that school environments are safe and protected
• Engage parents by capitalizing on their current involvement in remote learning to improve future outcomes
• Adjust the school and
exam calendar to take into account the teaching time
• Consider shortening the
academic year(s) and following an accelerated syllabus
that focuses on core subjects
• Prepare special afterschool study classes (either mandatory or for selected groups) so that students can catch up on core subjects
Targeting resources to where it is needed the most
A strong and equitable reopening and recovery require the careful use of resources, which relies on broad coordination, effective targeting, and continual use of data to adjust and improve approaches. We must ensure that resources are focused on areas where they are most needed. To help ensure that resources are targeted in a manner that supports a strong and equitable reopening of schools, policymakers should:
Use existing administrative and survey data to identify risk factors and guide the design of social transfer mechanisms
Gather relevant data early and continuously throughout the reopening process to support implementation, adaptation, and learning
Getting children back to school
Students, teachers, and households are facing new pressures on their time and resources that will make re-enrolment challenging for some families as schools reopen. Governments should implement universal campaigns to encourage enrolment and consider additional measures to support the transition back to school, including incentives to encourage parents and school meals targeted to the most vulnerable.
To encourage and support the enrollment of all students, the government should consider:
• Combining community participation and large-scale direct communication campaigns to parents, and consider increasing attendance options to accommodate all children, including those with the highest risk of dropping out.
• Providing financial or in-kind support, such as school feeding, to help families overcome the increased costs of attending school.
COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every aspect of our lives. We at Edugrant (www. edugrant.org) understand that all hands must be on deck to ensure the successful transitioning into the post-pandemic era. As we look to the future and plan for students to return to schools in-person very soon, we must recognize and prepare for the ways the virus and necessary public health response has changed and will change the way students learn.
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