The COVID- 19 Pandemic has caused the necessity of social isolation measures that have broken school- based education in most countries in the world. Leaders of educational systems and organizations need to develop plans for the continuation of education through alternate modalities due to new conditions.
The Organization for Economic Co- operation and Development has published some documents to support educational leaders at various levels of educational governance in formulating adaptive, effective, coherent and equitable responses to the crisis that will disrupt educational opportunities globally. The COVID- 19 Pandemic is first a matter of Public Health and mitigating its effects will depend on the actions of the governments in slowing down the spread of infection. Actions include social distancing that means school closures.As a result of the scale of the impact all over the world l, the COVID- 19 Pandemic is not just a matter of Public Health because it will impact social, economic and political life, especially in the most vulnerable populations within countries. The limitations to meet during a protracted Pandemic will limit opportunities for students to learn during the period of social distancing.In the vast majority of the countries in the world there has been a government directive that students and teachers do not come to school at the beginning of March. Now, as the COVID- 19 Pandemic runs its course, many governments are implementing measures that limit the number of people congregating in public places and have put in place alternative methods for students and teachers to continue with their lessons when attending school is not possible and are working on methods that will make schools fit for working in a safe environment.
According to a document published by UNESCO, the United Nations Secretary – General Antonio Guterris recently called on governments to prioritize education for all children, including the most marginalized and the Global Education Coalition was established to support them in strengthen distance learning and facilitating the reopening of schools. UNESCO gave a list of priorities to reopen: develop clear and easy- to- understand protocols on hygiene and distancing measures, including prohibiting activities that require large gatherings, straggling the start and the close of the school day, moving classes to temporary spaces or outdoor and having school in shifts to reduce class size. “Fondazione Agnelli” pushlished a document summarizing the decisions made by world educational ministries to face the situation. Italy, Spain, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales are treading very cautiously so decided not to open until September as the risks are too high.Other countries as for example England are going to reopen in June but parents, teachers and scientists disagree and the education sector is divided over the June 1 plan. The same happened in Denmark where some parents kept their children at home saying they didn’t want them to be “Guinea pig”. In the USA, Public Health official authority Anthony Fauci warned about the dangers to children if schools are reopened and California’s state university system, the largest in the United States, canceled classes for the autumn semester.
Last week France opened some schools in the “green zones “, less affected by the virus, which do not include Paris, not for all the students and not compulsory, but they were forced to close sixty of them due to new cases of COVID-19. Classes capped at 10 students for preschools and 15 students for older groups with strict measuresand protocols. Norway was among the first countries to open up nursery schools followed by schools for the youngest pupils, between ages six and 10. They are divided into groups of four and go to school twice a week although the government increased the number of teachers. The reopening was originally met with concern among parents. In Germany school reopened at the beginning of May for 6th grade students, with classes halved, more teachers and a very strict protocol about hygiene and social distancing. But parents in the German state of Saxony have won the right to keep their children out of school. South Corea is reopening in stages, with gigh school seniors returning first and middle classes and primary students slated to go back to school in the following weeks after an unprecedented five-months break.
China reopened with very severe rules to follow students equipped with masks, special uniforms and dividing elements between desks. Staff members take students’ temperatures before they enter school buildings and are required to wear a survey on an app that calculates a person’s risk of infection. They are also required to take their temperature twice a day while at school. All over the world fierce debates divide scientists and politicians. Restarts have been delayed several times as there are still worries over the students’ safety. The most common response seems to be school starting on different days and students alternating between attending classes and online institutions at home. Education officials underline that a school would be shuttered immediately if an infection is confirmed amond schools students, teachers or staff.What all governments are scrutinizing is the science, which they hope will tell them whether it’s safe to reopen or not,whether children get the virus but above all how easily they can spread it. When and how to reopen schools remains the “most delicate “ issue for every government in the world and the choise is whether it is willing to take the risk.
MANUELA RIVETTI Laureata in Lingue e Letterature Straniere presso l’Università degli Studi di Torino, ho conseguito le abilitazioni all’insegnamento per le classi di concorso A45 e A46, lingua inglese nella scuola secondaria di primo grado e lingua e cultura inglese nella secondaria di secondo grado. Ho inoltre conseguito l’abilitazione all’insegnamento nella scuola dell’infanzia e la doppia abilitazione nella scuola primaria, sia come docente su posto comune che come docente di inglese.La lingua inglese e l’insegnamento sono la mia passione, e per questo ho proseguito il mio percorso con un Corso di Perfezionamento in Didattica delle Lingue Straniere.A partire dal 2009 ho svolto diversi corsi di formazione per i docenti della scuola primaria in qualità di tutor per lo sviluppo delle competenze linguistiche--comunicative e metodologico – didattiche presso l’ USR Piemonte. Nell’anno scolastico 2012-13 sono stata la referente del Progetto Comenius Regio “Boosting Knowledge Through Music “, svolto in collaborazione con alcune scuole del Devon, tra cui un istituto “for special needs”, che mi ha permesso di approfondire la conoscenza del sistema scolastico inglese e della cultura anglosassone in materia di insegnamento - apprendimento.Dal 2007 mi occupo di Orientamento scolastico e di continuità come Funzione strumentale. Ho partecipato a vari progetti sulla costruzione del curricolo verticale coordinati dal prof. Martin Dodman e lo scorso anno scolastico ho fatto parte del suo gruppo di lavoro per la correzione nazionale delle prove Invalsi di lingua inglese. Condivido il motto di Edgar Morin, “meglio una testa ben fatta che ben piena”, insieme a quello di William Butler Yeats, “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire”.