The coronavirus crisis has forced all major industries to shift their operations online–the education sector is no exception. With lockdowns being imposed across the world, schools and higher education institutions have been shut down to protect students and prevent contagion. According to UNESCO, this has impacted more than 1.26 billion students across 191 countries. In India alone, more than 320 million students have been affected by the school closures since PM Narendra Modi imposed a national lockdown on March 25.
Governments worldwide have recommended shifting to online learning as a stop-gap arrangement to avoid any significant disruptions in academic calendars. Consequently, e-learning is now being heralded as the key to transform the education sector. While the benefits of virtual learning are manifold, the immense digital, gender, and class divide in India mean that these benefits will only accrue to those who have access to technology, those who can adapt to it, and most importantly, those who can afford it.
According to the Key Indicators of Household Social Consumption on Education in India report, based on the 2017-18 National Sample Survey, only 23.8% of Indian households have internet access. This statistic is even lower in rural areas, where just 14.9% of households have access to the internet–as opposed to 42% of urban households. Only 13% of people surveyed (aged above five) in rural areas are able to use the internet. The overlapping socioeconomic and gender disparities are also quite stark in such areas, as just 8.5% of females in rural areas know how to use the internet. Additionally, a mere 4.4% of rural households have a computer–compared to 23.4% of urban households.
These pitiful numbers highlight the fact that without a comprehensive plan of action, a majority of the country will be left out of the pursuit to achieve basic education in the months to come. During a pandemic, with such limited access to learning, some children could be left with the difficult choice of either abandoning education altogether or traveling to a friend’s house who has internet to attend classes, thereby risking their health.
Experts have argued that the government must work to bridge the gaps in access by improving internet infrastructure and connectivity, and by subsidizing mobile data to make learning through WhatsApp, or other media platforms more affordable. If universities remain closed for a longer period of time, education inequalities will increase. In light of this possibility, authorities must find ways to subsidize cheap smartphones and expand the access and affordability of decent bandwidth in remote areas to promote learning among all sections of the population.
While physical infrastructure is an enormous barrier to children and young adults being able to learn remotely, one must also take into consideration the concerns of the providers of that education. The sudden and rapid shift in focus to online learning without any real planning has meant that teachers are playing catch up, not only in finding ways to teach effectively virtually, but also in trying to mold their curriculum to fit a format it was not originally meant for. Training for teachers does not necessarily include skills needed to undertake online teaching–which could require building lesson plans or creating audio-visual content. If teachers are unfamiliar or comfortable with virtual platforms, it could affect their ability to communicate learning material in a precise manner to their students, which could ultimately result in a lower quality of education being provided to students.
Adaptation to online education may also be easier for those with English as their medium of instruction, due to the existing widespread availability of English learning tools and content. In comparison, resources for the vernacular languages that dominate the Indian school education space are far more limited. As face-to-face interaction becomes less common, all of the factors mentioned above could have a significant impact on students’ learning outcomes. If they are not able to ask clarifying questions to their teachers–due to lack of internet connectivity or the structure of classes–or are left to learn some syllabus on their own, it could invariably foster rote learning rather than facilitating meaningful comprehension of various subjects.
Though online learning tools are glorified for being customizable, affordable and inclusive, access to the internet is not. There is a massive gender gap in internet usage in India. According to the Internet and Mobile Association of India’s (IAMAI) India Internet 2019 report, only 33% women have access to the internet. This statistic is all the more sobering when one considers that 67% men have access to the internet in the same country. The disparity was even more glaring in rural areas, where only 28% of women had access to the internet, as compared to 72% of men. We are already seeing gender concerns being overlooked during this all-consuming pandemic, and if the government does not consider these challenges and implement measures that support inclusive and comprehensive learning, inequalities in learning will continue to widen.
Various non-profits and public-private organizations are working to address the challenges brought on by the shift to remote learning. Avanti, a social-educational enterprise established in 2010, has launched a free learning app called ‘Sankalp’ for Hindi medium students of Class IX-XII. The app contains topics of mathematics and science, and includes classes being streamed on YouTube, TikTok, Facebook and other social media platforms. ThinkZone, a social impact start-up from Cuttack uses Interactive Voice Response (IVR), SMS and radio to help those who do not have access to the internet. Through the radio, it broadcasts activity-based modules for younger learners from age 3-10.
While such measures are yielding some positive results, there needs to be a simultaneous effort by the central and state governments to improve digital infrastructure for virtual learning and tailor school syllabi and teacher training to fit the format of online courses. Unfortunately, there has not been any significant expenditure to address this concern. In fact, the Center for Budget and Governance Accountability’s (CBGA) Provita Kundu noted that the Human Resource Development Ministry’s budget for e-learning in FY 2020-21 was actually reduced to INR 469 crore (4.69 billion) from INR 604 crore (6.04 billion) in FY 2019-20.
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the severe inequalities that exist between the rich and the poor, rural and urban households, and between males and females. These disparities lay bare the pitfalls in access to education in India, even on virtual platforms. While a push towards remote learning is understandable in these trying times, the current system is insufficient to serve as a suitable alternative to in-person learning. Following the current trajectory, an inability or unwillingness to build and strengthen the education infrastructure in the country will only push the poor, vulnerable and disadvantaged even further into the margins of society, and even worse, leave them behind.
Image Source: Deccan Herald
The Challenge of (Online) Education in India During the COVID-19 Pandemic
May 29, 2020
