How Are the Children? Schooling During an Outbreak
2020-04-01
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1The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, says school closings have affected the education of more than 80 percent of students worldwide.
2Robert Jenkins is the organization's Global Chief of Education.
3He said, "Based on lessons learned with the school closures in response to Ebola, the longer children stay away from school, the less likely they are to ever return."
4Ebola is a highly infectious virus that has affected areas in Africa periodically over more than 40 years.
5The coronavirus crisis has spread to at least 175 countries affecting children around the world.
6UNICEF says it is aiding 145 low- and middle-income countries with tools and money to help children continue their learning.
7In the United States, most of the schools that closed their doors because of the COVID-19 outbreak said the closings would be temporary.
8But health officials warned that Americans may need to keep schools closed for many months.
9Jon Pederson is dean of the University of South Carolina College of Education.
10He answered some questions about how this might affect the education of millions of children on the website The Conversation.
11Educators will have to find ways to help students want to learn.
12If a lesson plan does not excite students at school, then the lesson plan really will not work at home.
13Teachers will have to be more creative and resourceful while classes are suspended.
14For example, in the U.S., they can take students on virtual classroom field trips to places like the National Aquarium in Baltimore.
15They can see everything from wild bears in Alaska to classical music concerts through the Virtual School Activities website.
16Students can learn how to carry out science experiments at Fun Learning for Kids.
17In addition, the New York Public Library has more than 300,000 books that students can download for free.
18Students with special needs can use Educational Technology and Mobile Learning.
19We do not know how long this crisis will last.
20The federal government has permitted states to cancel required standardized tests for the school year.
21States and schools will have to decide if students should move on to the next grade or graduate.
22Not sending students to the next grade or not graduating seniors would affect all public schools, colleges and universities.
23It would also affect families and the workforce.
24There are measures that states and schools could take.
25For example, some schools could move to year-round schooling, extend their current or upcoming academic year, or lengthen school days and cancel some holidays.
26In places like El Paso, Texas; Romeoville, Illinois; and Bardstown, Kentucky, some schools already operate all year or had longer school years after hurricanes, floods or other disasters.
27Whatever school leaders decide to do, it is going to cost more money.
28And it is not clear how officials will be able to pay for the new measures.
29Pederson believes that states, schools and teachers have to deal with problems quickly.
30Their action has reduced the possibility that extreme measures will be needed and that the education system will not fall behind.
31He noted the example of one of the teachers he works with.
32He said professor Gloria Boutte always starts meetings with a traditional Masai greeting: "How are the children?"
33I'm Jonathan Evans.
1The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, says school closings have affected the education of more than 80 percent of students worldwide. 2Robert Jenkins is the organization's Global Chief of Education. He said, "Based on lessons learned with the school closures in response to Ebola, the longer children stay away from school, the less likely they are to ever return." 3Ebola is a highly infectious virus that has affected areas in Africa periodically over more than 40 years. The coronavirus crisis has spread to at least 175 countries affecting children around the world. 4UNICEF says it is aiding 145 low- and middle-income countries with tools and money to help children continue their learning. 5In the United States, most of the schools that closed their doors because of the COVID-19 outbreak said the closings would be temporary. But health officials warned that Americans may need to keep schools closed for many months. 6Jon Pederson is dean of the University of South Carolina College of Education. He answered some questions about how this might affect the education of millions of children on the website The Conversation. 7Will students learn anything while schools are closed? 8Educators will have to find ways to help students want to learn. If a lesson plan does not excite students at school, then the lesson plan really will not work at home. 9Teachers will have to be more creative and resourceful while classes are suspended. For example, in the U.S., they can take students on virtual classroom field trips to places like the National Aquarium in Baltimore. They can see everything from wild bears in Alaska to classical music concerts through the Virtual School Activities website. Students can learn how to carry out science experiments at Fun Learning for Kids. In addition, the New York Public Library has more than 300,000 books that students can download for free. 10Students with special needs can use Educational Technology and Mobile Learning. 11Will students have to repeat a grade or not graduate as expected? 12We do not know how long this crisis will last. The federal government has permitted states to cancel required standardized tests for the school year. 13States and schools will have to decide if students should move on to the next grade or graduate. Not sending students to the next grade or not graduating seniors would affect all public schools, colleges and universities. It would also affect families and the workforce. 14When could lost time be made up? 15There are measures that states and schools could take. For example, some schools could move to year-round schooling, extend their current or upcoming academic year, or lengthen school days and cancel some holidays. 16In places like El Paso, Texas; Romeoville, Illinois; and Bardstown, Kentucky, some schools already operate all year or had longer school years after hurricanes, floods or other disasters. 17Whatever school leaders decide to do, it is going to cost more money. And it is not clear how officials will be able to pay for the new measures. 18What good news is there? 19Pederson believes that states, schools and teachers have to deal with problems quickly. Their action has reduced the possibility that extreme measures will be needed and that the education system will not fall behind. 20He noted the example of one of the teachers he works with. He said professor Gloria Boutte always starts meetings with a traditional Masai greeting: "How are the children?" 21I'm Jonathan Evans. 22Hai Do adapted this article for VOA Learning English based on information from UNICEF and the Conversation under Creative Commons license. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 23________________________________________________________________ 24Words in This Story 25response -n. something done in reaction to something else 26outbreak -n. the sudden start of the spread of disease or fighting 27virtual -adj. taking place on the internet through computers 28standardized test -n. a test that is given to all students in the same way and under the same conditions 29graduating -adj. to receive a degree proving that a student has met all educational requirements to receive the honor 30academic -adj. related to schooling, especially higher education