AS Guyana and the rest of the world are battling with the deadly coronavirus, Guyanese are still adjusting to the changes that were made to their lives, changes which are necessary to beat this pandemic out of our country.
One of these changes has tampered with the continuation of in-classroom education delivery to our country’s youth. Due to safety precautions being taken, and persons instructed to stay home, all schools and universities are closed and are making use of online platforms to continue with the curricula.
While this may be an advantage to some, there are so many other factors that have to be taken into consideration, so that all will have equal access and opportunity to education.
The Ministry of Education has so far implemented an organised strategy, using alternative means such as television programmes, radio programmes, and more; however, the Ministry of Public Telecommunications (MoPT) are exploring other means to ensure that everyone is reached.
In an interview with the Minister of MoPT, Catherine Hughes, she said that it was a very complex and challenging situation, given that, even with the execution of online classes and television and radio programmes, there are those who would be disadvantaged.
However, she noted that all measures are being explored to guarantee the progression of our youths in the face of the crisis.
Minister Hughes said that this is the time to bridge the digital divide, and this situation brings home the point of disparities of the haves and the have nots. She pointed out that several angles of shortcoming can now be seen.
“Since we now have this problem and schools are not in operation, we are not going into a conventional school system. We’ve put internet into almost all the schools in all regions, opened close to 200 ICT hubs, in schools, communities, libraries, government buildings, and hospitals. But the challenge we have now, is that these places cannot be used. COVID-19 does not allow using the existing internet in certain places. So we are examining what are the options we have,” Minister said.
She noted that what was being explored, is to allow teachers to use the smart classrooms at their respective schools and host online classes for the students. This, however, only addresses the issue of teachers who do not have the means to host classes.
“But the reality is, even if we use the smart classroom, we cannot be able to guarantee that every child will have access. As it is now, we are seeking recommendations from Ministry of Health and PAHO to give guidance on if students can go to these hubs to have access. We have had a two-year plan, which includes a programme to give every child a tablet, but the issue of lack of internet, still exists,” Hughes said.
But making internet available at homes is too farfetched, given that that is the function and service of the private sector. Nonetheless, the Ministry is adamant about arriving at a solution to assist learners at home.
There is also the issue of some teachers who are not as technically inclined to deliver education through online means. To this end, Minister said that they are exploring the possibility of training sessions for teachers, at the Centre of Excellence at the University of Guyana, Turkeyen Campus.
Hughes said that the Centre of Excellence has been facilitating ministries with database management and website designing, and she believes that it can be possible to provide training for teachers on how to teach on a virtual platform.
Other efforts of MoPT
In addition to seeking ways of assisting MoE, Minister Hughes said that her ministry will be announcing, in a couple of days, the alternative ways of paying pension.
The Post Office, she said, falls under the umbrella of MoPT, and to limit the number of persons who are lining up at the offices at this time, the Ministry is presenting options.
“We have finalized arrangements with Banks, Ministry of Social Protection, and MoPT to allow pensions to go straight to bank accounts. I proposed this about a year and a half ago, and there was some resistance in the public domain, but it looks like what we were planning to do in a 2-year span, COVID-19 is forcing us to do now… Mobile money could be another way. Persons can still go to post offices, but we are just providing options. A database has to be created to facilitate these other means, and we’ve been working on that database,” she said.
Additionally, MoPT has been working along with the National Data Management Authority to create a database that addresses vulnerable groups. In the presence of COVID-19, the list of vulnerable groups has been extended to more groups than pensioners, persons with disabilities, and single parents receiving public assistance. To this end, the Ministry is making the necessary database available for persons who need assistance at this time.
