Erasing education delay must take priority

The spread of COVID-19 has had the largest and most harmful effects on the education sector for almost two years. All levels of education institutions have been closed, replaced with TV lessons and e-learning, which have been ineffective...

The spread of COVID-19 has had the largest and most harmful effects on the education sector for almost two years. All levels of education institutions have been closed, replaced with TV lessons and e-learning, which have been ineffective. This has led to large-scale education delay. To address this issue, the Ministry of Education and Science has been developing a program to eliminate education delays, and a special working group has been appointed.

About the program, Minister of Education and Science L.Enkh-Amgalan said, “We are developing a national program to eliminate educational gaps. This is not just a one-season program. For three years, a program to eliminate the schooling delay will be implemented. We are developing a medium-term program for this purpose. We are also working on a special program for children of herders living in the countryside.”

“At the moment, one of the new options in our education sector is a blended learning environment. It means, some classes will be broadcasted through TV and some will be taught in the classroom. Currently, children, parents and teachers are very tired of TV lessons. We can’t put too much pressure on these exhausted children anymore. So we reduced the number of TV lessons per week.”

A national master plan has been drawn up to address the delays, pending government approval. The main purpose of the plan is to support independent learning while making up for learning delays. It has three main phases: taking students back to school, providing opportunities to make up for lost time, and eliminating the education gap to stabilize lessons.

According to the plan, students and parents will be provided with feedback during and after lockdowns to reduce the risk of dropouts. The ministry will conduct a survey from among students in remote areas and those who cannot attend TV learning. The student-teacher-parent tripartite collaboration will be improved. In other words, students and parents should not think that only teachers should teach according to their own plans, but should work together to develop a plan to make up for the delays.

The ministry said it will also assess educational gaps and physical development indicators, during the pandemic. In addition, research will be conducted to identify the resources of assistant teachers and psychologists to work with struggling students to address their social and psychological problems. Based on the results of the research, the education authority and local governments will ensure the readiness to provide legal, financial and human resources, such as teachers, their salaries and school infrastructure, and the learning environment.

During the lockdown, stress and loneliness among children caused by family and financial difficulties, and the inability to watch TV lessons and keep in touch with teachers and classmates have had negative impacts on children’s mental health. This can lead to mental blocks and cause school dropout, according to child experts.

The plan states that prior to the start of school, teachers should contact the families of students who have been disconnected for a long time to gather specific information to determine if there are any problems related to learning. When problems are identified, psychological support is to be provided not only to the child, but also to the family and parents to overcome this mental barriers to learning.

Not putting pressure on students and parents for falling behind on lessons will encourage students to stay in school and learn, say experts. After increasing school attendance, various tests will be performed by education officials to identify students’ social and psychological problems. In addition, through teachers, research on the prevalence of learning disabilities and screen dependence, and sociological research on children’s psychology and social status will be carried out. Based on the above assessments, a designated psychologist will help create a positive social and psychological environment in schools and families. Parents and guardians will be provided with methodological training to support children’s psychological and physical development and counseling, according to the general plan.

Blended learning environments are the main support of higher education authorities, local communities and schools in overcoming educational gaps. The distance learning environment was the only solution for continuing education during the pandemic and will continue to be even after COVID-19, officials highlighted.

Creating a mixed environment of classroom and e-learning is a new concept in Mongolia. Countries with leading education systems have created their own national distance learning platforms to develop and deliver learning content to the general public during the pandemic.

In the current circumstances, the education sector in Mongolia needs to develop distance learning and mixed learning activities as a matter of priority. The introduction of e-learning platforms is being considered, and is reflected in many policy documents of Parliament and the government.

In order to implement mixed learning activities, it is necessary to create a unified base of e-learning content by converting all subjects included in the general school curriculum to online format. Based on the unified database of elearning content, it will be possible to make up for delays and organize combined training through e-learning platforms where classroom learning is not possible.

To strengthen information technology infrastructure for e-learning, the government to provide teachers and students with computers and tablets, build “smart” classrooms in schools, ensure reliable internet connection, and increase the capacity of servers, according to Head of Primary and Secondary Education Department of the Ministry of Education and Science T.Nyam-Ochir.

This comprehensive plan will not only serve to eliminate the education delay across the country but also prevent future education gaps, highlight education officials.

Head of the Ulaanbaatar Education Department J.Gantulga said, “The nationwide preparation to eliminate educational delay is under preparation. It will be implemented next school year. Education gap is very high in schools. For example, 27.4 percent of the content was lost in this year’s Mongolian language class, according to the relevant study. The ministry will organize a special program to eliminate delays in the 20202021 school year. Some said that many students are left behind. There is no need to worry about this as there will be a support program.”

Although TV lessons are provided during lockdown, it is not able to reach all children equally. In Mongolia, due to the pandemic, 178,000 children, or 26 percent of all students, are unable to access distance learning due differences in living standards, remote location, or lack of internet and television access, according to the ministry.

Minister L.Enkh-Amgalan highlighted that about 70 to 80 percent of all students are behind on learning and there is need to open class training to erase the gap. However, TV lessons remain the main education platform as lockdowns continue.

UNICEF Senior Education Specialist N.Tserenadmid said, “According to many studies, one in three Mongolian children are behind on lessons. It is estimated that 70 percent of the world’s students, or 1.2 billion children, have limited access to education. According to a World Bank study, children’s education gap will cost 10 trillion USD in the future. On the other hand, education researchers believe that the education gap in Mongolia will have negative consequences for the next 10 to 15 years.”

According to a World Bank study, per capita income is expected to fall by 865 USD, if online or TV lessons continue and educational delay is not resolved in the world. East Asia and the Pacific are expected to lose 2.8 trillion USD due to education delay. Therefore, making up for the education gap is critical to Mongolia’s future economy and prospects.

Education is not just a matter of knowledge. In addition to learning about science at school, students develop relationships with people, make friends, socialize, compete, develop themselves, and learn about ethics. Many parents are concerned about the physical, mental, and communication skills of young children who have been forced to stay at home for more than a year, and have lost contact with the community. This is not just a temporary problem, it can have irreparable damage that can accompany a child for a lifetime. Many studies have shown that this temporary delay in education could have a significant impact on the lives of millions of people in the future.

Countries around the world are working to overcome the education delay and open classrooms. Substantial funding was allocated to extend e-learning hours and make contract-based arrangements. The Mongolian government has decided to implement a special program to erase the education gap. The future of thousands of children will depend on the results of this program. If the program fails, the Mongolian economy and people will suffer in the coming decade. Therefore, the Ministry of Education and Science needs to focus heavily on this program to ensure its success. There is hope that the pandemic will soon be over with the rollout of vaccination, but the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on education will not go away without major changes.