I close my laptop, saved not by the bell, but a flurry of 4 by 4 black boxes disappearing from the screen. My eyes sear from the 6 hours of class time on Zoom, a formerly
unknown platform now a staple of interaction among school, work, and social environments. However, even after having missed out on graduations or listening to grainy audio quality of a sodium volcano in lieu of a science fair, or labs, we are the lucky ones.
According to the United Nations News network, “one in three” children globally missed out on remote learning, leaving 436.1 million children without months of not just class time, but academic and social emotional development. Unfortunately, as a UNESCO report revealed, as many as 617 million children are unable to achieve proficiency in reading and mathematics, let alone absorb new information via an unfamiliar learning platform in the midst of an international crisis. Of course, these barriers to education don’t just pose a logistical risk to the progress of Sustainable Development Goal 4: Quality Education, but to overall well being, including low self-esteem, career prospects, and mental health. After all, education is the cross-section for so many socio-economic issues, particularly gender equality and economic parity.
However, just as academic success isn’t just fully captured by standardized test scores, neither is recovery if we neglect the silent, yet just as deadly epidemic: the mental health crisis. Though some aspects of school like can adversely affect students’ mental wellbeing, such as overwhelming workload and lack of mental health, the cadence of classroom chatter and routine social interaction is a formative experience that transcends geographical or financial background, especially for primary school children. Without the safety net of school and face-to-face interaction between friendly that can't be replicated via video, students are consumed by stress, anxiety (both in regards to academic performance and contracting the virus), eating disorders that flourish in isolation and disrupted eating habits, and irritability or frustration, especially for special needs students who rely on school professionals. for social skills training.
Despite the narrative of coronavirus as the “great equalizer”, the disproportionate number of low-income students suffering from long-term learning loss and low mental health suggests otherwise. In fact, COVID-19 related school closures have the potential to launch 72 million children into learning poverty, or the inability to comprehend a simple reading text, reducing not just their grades, but these students’ ability to prosper financially, with a loss of “$10 trillion dollars in future life time earnings”. On the more extreme, and all too common end, a significant number of children from low-income and/or unstable home environments are perpetually at risk of verbal or sexual asault, malnutrition from lack of access to food traditionally supplied by academic institutions, and comestic abuse, with “78% of parents” accounting for instances of child abuse. Unable to escape these psychologically and physically scarring situations, children suffer behind Zoom squares and lose the motivation to even log in to class, let alone complete hours of school work and studying to succeed academically in a world that might not recognize or respect them once they emerge from the cesses of quarantine
So how do we address these academic shortcomings coupled with the need for socioemotional support to ensure our generation of students can thrive in this world, meeting the challenges of today while forming the foundation for a brighter tomorrow?Like its problem, the solution is nuanced yet within our grasp.
Enter literacy. Not just the kind found in reading circles, but rather, the communicative and sociocultural practices that allow individuals to contribute effectively to a networked world. This versatile tool equips students with the resources they need to navigate their academic experiences, whether it's presenting research findings, or, on a more immediate level, providing the foundation for students to process information. However, literacy isn’t just a medium for reading and math mastery , but a pathway to a more equitable economy where students harness their skill sets to contribute to a global workforce characterized by digital interconnectedness.
ICT, or Information and Communications Technology literacy, does just that. In an increasingly digitized world, this type of literacy teaches students how to harness media platforms to enrich their academic understanding, develop a sense of curiosity as they delve into the myriad of knowledge in online learning platforms, and foster a sense of self-confidence as they learn to problem-solve and collaborate with peers across all walks of life.
Emotional literacy, not just emphasizing external success but emotional stability and balance. Although hybrid or fully-in person scenarios are ideal for improved mental health, school curriculum throughout the pandemic and beyond include a safe, uncensored virtual space where students reflect on their mental state, specifically their stress levels , factors preventing them from flourishing in their fullest selves as scholars and as individuals, and ways they can collaborate with schools and teaches to counteract these stressors or cope with existing.
The pandemic may have upended our academic and social lives, but by creating an empathetic, versatile student-centered we can ensure the digital divide becomes a digital bridge.
