CAPRI calls for syllabus review, school vax drives

A leading think tank has proposed that the impact of the COVID-19-induced school closure be addressed while the island simultaneously looks towards the start of the new school year next week and assesses prospects for the resumption of face-to-face teaching and learning.

The Caribbean Policy Research Institute (CAPRI) has called for teachers to review the syllabus from the remote year of teaching and for the deployment of trainee teachers as tutors for students who have fallen behind.

These are among 25 recommendations made by CAPRI in its Time Out: The Impact of COVID-19 on Education report, which was released last evening.

The study, which is co-funded by the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, was conducted by Stephanie Sewell and Maxine Henry-Wilson.

When schools were shuttered in March 2020, some 600,000 students across Jamaica had to tap into online learning.

In the first term of remote lessons, only 66 per cent of students had exclusive access to a device for educational purposes, and the lack of access was disproportionately worse among poorer children.

“During the initial period of school closures, 62 per cent of students at the primary level and 60 per cent of students at the secondary level considered to be from vulnerable groups reported that they had not been able to continue classes for one or more reasons,” the report reads.

Though the data does not exist to precisely measure learning loss, CAPRI said it was certain that this had occurred.

“The evidence – qualitative, speculative, and anecdotal – suggests that the learning deficit from the period of remote learning is significant due to the inherent limitations of the medium, lack of connectivity, unavailability of devices, electricity outages, and unsupportive home environments,” says the report.

CAPRI acknowledged that the syllabus review is likely to impact the pace of the current year’s curriculum, and in that event, the school year should be extended to allow for its completion.

The think tank also explained that research has shown that targeted intensive tutoring can help underserved or fallen-behind students to meet curriculum targets.

The researchers suggested that tutoring hours be considered in student teachers’ practicum requirements.

In an effort to improve learning outcomes from remote teaching, CAPRI has recommended that learning pods be established and support given by the education ministry.

“A learning pod is where a small group of students gather in person to do classes together, whether delivered online or by a teacher who is physically present. Learning pods avail children of the social interaction that the closure of physical school has eliminated, with detrimental effects on their psycho-social development and mental health,” CAPRI explained.

Telecommunications companies have also been urged to continue to expand Internet access across the island.

Where Internet access or devices remains a challenge, the education ministry is being encouraged to support the continued innovation of “low technology”, such as the delivery of lesson packets and use of community blackboards.

“Even without hard data, the ostensibly obvious take-away is that the damage done to children, students, education, and the country must be staunched and measures taken to reopen schools so as to cauterise further damage,” a section of the report reads.

TACKLING CAPACITY, VAX ISSUES

More than 200,000 doses of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines have been earmarked by the Government to prioritise the vaccination of children 12 years and older.

Since then, the education ministry has announced that secondary schools will be allowed to return to face-to-face once their school achieves a 65 percent vaccination rate.

To achieve this, CAPRI outlined that the Government should encourage and facilitate vaccinations for all teachers and children 12 and older by administering vaccines at schools, via mobile units, transporting students to vaccinations and providing targeted information to students.

“There are multiple scenarios that can be anticipated as well as unanticipated developments that render completely new scenarios that we cannot yet envision,” CAPRI noted.

Referencing the United States and other countries, CAPRI recommended regular COVID-19 testing for teachers and students. Given the availability and affordability of rapid antigen tests, CAPRI said this should be considered in Jamaica, at no cost to teachers or students.

Further, the think tank suggested that surveys of infection and positivity rates be conducted in communities with schools, with the aim of identifying community-related risk factors and the vulnerabilities of each institution.

CAPRI also recommended that the Government procure and utilise alternative locations, such as churches and community centres, in the proximity of schools, to allow for more students to attend in person while observing social distancing.

“Many schools are not ‘fit for purpose’ in terms of being COVID-19 protocol compliant. Classrooms are too small and or poorly ventilated, and capacity is a challenge. Other venues such as church halls should be used to augment the capacity for pandemic-suitable classroom spaces,” CAPRI said.

judana.murphy@gleanerjm.com