Five months on from the start of the coronavirus
pandemic, and policymakers and public health
officials have decided it’s time to return to
the classroom. Around the world, schools and
colleges are preparing for a new semester, and
though environments may be different, one
thing is clear: teachers and students will be
depending on technology more than ever.
LEARNING IN TIMES
OF THE CORONAVIRUS
Over the past few months, teaching bodies
and school administrators have been fiercely
debating the safety of reopening schools in the
United States. And it’s a similar picture in other
countries. In April, an eye-watering 1.5 billion
students around the world were sent home
from school for an early summer break, and
whilst some have been trialing new ways of
learning, others have pulled the plug entirely,
with kids going without lessons or contact time
for almost six months. With September just
around the corner, the pressure is mounting
for schools and educational institutions to
reopen their doors, with countries like the
United Kingdom promising that schools will
be given a priority above any potential
future lockdown. One of the biggest
stumbling blocks in reopening schools safely
is the lack of reliable information on just how
easily young people can catch and spread the
virus. Although some doctors have suggested
children cannot easily transmit the virus,
clusters of cases have been reported, stemming
from schools and nurseries in countries like
Australia - and even in summer camps in
the United States. At one camp alone, more