Posted: Jun 1, 2020 Event: 31 May 2020
As the pandemic reached different corners of the world, school buildings closed in the middle of the academic year. However, teachers and students did not stop working, as they transitioned to virtual classrooms and tried to find new ways to continue learning. This has not come without challenges, as sitting in front of a computer is not an ideal substitute for being in a physical space. Organic interactions with teachers and other students are lost, and the crisis around the world makes it harder for everyone to stay focused. Furthermore, differences of infrastructure between nations but also within countries —access to a computer, internet, and a calm place to work—has meant that not all kids have the same opportunity to continue learning. Have efforts to transition to virtual learning been successful at all or have these past few months been lost for students? As the pandemic continues and it is still uncertain when and how teachers and students will be able to be back in the same space, how can we better prepare for education in a post COVID world?
On 31 May, we heared from experts from Latin America, the US and the Middle East, of the challenges education is experiencing during the pandemic and will continue to experience in a post-COVID world.
Our panelists are:
– Denis Mizne, Executive Director of Lemann Foundation (Brazil) – 2007 World Fellow
Emiliana Vegas, Senior Fellow and Co-Director of the Center for Universal Education at the Brookings Institution, former chief of the Education Division at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
– Raymond Ravaglia, Chief Learning Officer for Opportunity Education where he is developing innovative learning models and building new schools; founder of the Stanford University Online High School; and former Associate Dean and Director of Stanford Pre-Collegiate Studies.
– Nav Iqbal, Principal and CEO of GEMS Metropole School – Motor City (Dubai), with over a decade of school leadership experience.
Transition Studies 