[Socialmobilization] NCEE Newsletter Nov-Dec 21

[anusha sharma]

Nov - Dec 21 issue of the newsletter from the National Coalition on the 
Education Emergency (NCEE) with updates on the Education Emergency, our 
work and our plans. Please circulate widely in your networks.



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Newsletter on the Education Emergency
November - December 2021


The National Coalition on the Education Emergency (NCEE) has been 
continuing its efforts to '*resume*' and '*renew*' school education, 
advocating for school re-opening and for empathetic education on 
resumption.


*Omicron: Schools should be last to close and first to open*

As cases of omicron increase, there are apprehensions that schools will 
be closed again, the Delhi government has recently done so. However, the 
call that  '/Schools should be the last to close and first to re-open/' 
needs to be adhered to, given the huge costs of school closure  to the 
well-being of children and the relatively lower (even negligible) costs 
of re-opening schools. The new variant shows no indication of causing 
fatalities amongst children. Like with the economy, it is essential to 
make a clear consideration of the relative costs of keeping schools open 
and closing them. India has unfortunately shown it is easy to callously 
disregard the huge costs to the large sections of Indian children who 
are kept completely out of structured learning during closure. These 
costs are long term, even life long and we cannot afford to ignore them.


*Coalition prepares note on supporting early years’ education*

A note 
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1yVwx786Cqt2G3DOLTDlqSrw6iMq2Zm-e/view?usp=sharing> 
on supporting children’s learning in the foundational stage in the 
context of the current Education Emergency, caused by a long spell of 
school closure has been prepared by Prof. Venita Kaul with inputs from 
other education experts. It builds on the guidance provided in the 
publication A Future at Stake 
<https://educationemergency.net/2021/11/a-future-at-stake/> and focuses 
on foundational learning for children aged 3-8 years. This publication 
fills an important  need of teachers, in addressing the learning needs 
of young children, who have been most affected by school closure.


*Social Mobilization*


*Letter to Members of Parliament: *An appeal 
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1j4U6mIMzmpQBDS_Sg1XHkb4f8JKbB4R9/view?usp=sharing> 
was made to all the MPs to raise the issue of Education Emergency in the 
parliament, discuss in detail its various aspects and urgently address 
the emergency by taking concrete policy and budgetary actions that 
include financial, academic, nutritional and social measures, through a 
multi-year program.

*Consultation with Governments: *Drawing upon critical aspects from A 
Future at Stake 
<https://educationemergency.net/2021/11/a-future-at-stake/> and inputs 
from the committee formed by the Karnataka DSERT, the academic 
guidelines for school opening has been finalized and submitted to be 
issued by the education department. Read in English 
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nv8bjp_61ANIaUHJqtt3QBGG9gwKXUdz/view?usp=sharing> 
ಕನ್ನಡ 
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1glOg_x2sVKV39_wISsEjKCKehHemkCGk/view?usp=sharing>.

*Advocacy Campaigns*

*Eggs in midday meal:*The NCEE endorsed a _statement 
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vZb163gQci0EI1oWd2N2Ejd6Z2YWNryO/view?usp=sharing>_released 
by the _Right to Food campaign 
<https://twitter.com/aharanammahakku/status/1466355835626344457?s=21>_, 
Karnataka, asking the government to increase the planned provision of 
eggs from thrice a week to students in North East Karnataka, to cover 
all children in the state and provide eggs daily as a part of the midday 
meals. Such provision would make a significant impact on the nutrition 
status of children and help in improving the nutrition levels of 
children in the state. As part of this campaign, eggs and bananas were 
distributed in a government aided high school in Bengaluru to urge the 
government to take necessary steps.

*Children’s Day press release:* Emphasizing that the need of the hour is 
for children to return to a caring, safe and conducive learning 
environment, where the focus is on strengthening their learning-to-learn 
abilities and re-establishing connections amongst students and between 
teachers and students.//NCEE issued a statement 
<https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PkjGFfZi1VDVVfhI1vQyhjsuClaMu_Vv/view?usp=sharing> 
calling upon governments to pay heed to the needs of the children and 
help them get the education they need and deserve.

*Panel discussion:*RTE Forum organized a series of thematic 
consultations with educational experts, professionals and concerned 
stakeholders with the purpose of developing a position paper on the safe 
reopening of schools that will provide a comprehensive analysis of the 
challenges faced by children and offer clear recommendations for the 
government. Gurumurthy Kasinathan and Dr. Sajitha Bashir participated in 
the 2nd and 3rd consultations respectively, where aspects related to the 
limitations and suggestions for appropriate use of technology in the 
response to the Education Emergency, the chronic under-funding in the 
public education system in India and the financial resources needed to 
ensure a comprehensive response to reduce inequality were highlighted. 
Links: 1st consultation <https://youtu.be/bgd7IbwM084> 2nd consultation 
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCz26K65yFc> 3rd consultation 
<https://youtu.be/k4ZFYl4AtiM>



*Education support to schools and communities*

*Steps in the right direction: *The efforts of the**Tamil Nadu Education 
department to aid the educational recovery of students facing the 
repercussionsof the Education Emergency. Apart from dedicated funding 
from the government to address the learning gap due to school closure, 
two educational programs have been recently announced:

*Illam Thedi Kalvi **(“education coming home”)**: *The Tamil Nadu 
government in collaboration with several NGOs, education experts, 
teachers and community volunteershas initiated a community learning 
program to support student learning throughafter-school activities and 
lessonsin local community spaces. Efforts are underway to mobilize and 
sensitize volunteers through /kala jathas/and training programs. 
Resource material to be used by the volunteers has been developed by the 
SCERT.

*Ennum Ezhuthum**(“Counting and Writing”)**: *A foundational numeracy 
and literacy program to achieve foundational literacy and numeracy for 
all children <8 years in the next 3 years. The program aims to use a 
comprehensive approach that moves away from the traditional syllabus 
completion methods to using methods that areappropriate to students 
contexts. Members of the NCEE have been involved in the planning and 
implementation of these programs. For more information, write to us 
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net>.

The resource repository 
<https://teacher-network.in/OER/index.php/Educational_resource_repository> 
is being continually updated, compiling different ideas and activities 
to help teachers equip themselves with a flexible repertoire of 
approaches and resources to support the acquisition/re-acquisition of 
skills of learning – in terms of language abilities, mathematical 
abilities as well as socio-emotional development aspects .

We have also been continuing the documentation ofthe work and 
experiences of different organizations asinnovation models 
<https://teacher-network.in/OER/index.php/Education_Innovation_Models>, 
in engaging with children and creating opportunities for learning during 
the pandemic.

*Research*


*Policy Tracker: *In addition to the school opening status in different 
states, information regarding education finances, mid-day meals, 
textbooks, etc are being collated to be included as part of the policy 
tracker <https://educationemergency.net/policy-tracker/> by reaching out 
to government officials and other organizations. If you or anyone you 
know can help in this process or have any suggestions, please write to 
us 
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Re%3A%20NCEE%20Policy%20Tracker>. 
The education finance policy tracker is planned to be released early 
January 2022 and will provide information on state-wise budget 
allocations on education.

*Family Survey*: Key findings from the preliminary analysis of the 
household survey conducted in Karnataka to capture the educational 
experiences of children indicates that over 70% of parents felt that 
their children’s reading and writing skills have declined or stayed the 
same during the pandemic. The survey has now been completed in Telangana 
and is planned to be undertaken in Tamil Nadu as well. The short survey 
instrument can be translated into different languages. /Groups 
interested in administering the survey in their states can contact the 
NCEE 
<mailto:info at educationemergency.net?subject=Re%3A%20NCEE%20Family%20survey>./


Coalition in the news

Why Have They Done This to the Children? 
<https://brownstone.org/articles/why-have-they-done-this-to-the-children/>
“We have victimized kids and robbed them of a childhood, with no benefit 
whatsoever to show for it”. Bhaskaran Raman discusses indications that 
much of the world’s response to Covid-19 is indeed disproportionate fear 
rather than a rational response, in the context of children.

Back to School: How the gap in schooling has caused an education 
emergency in India <https://open.spotify.com/episode/1qQ9bho1NRLgrzPbA0AlmA>

A podcast episode of ‘The Suno India Show’ where Dr. Sajitha Bashir 
discusses ‘A Future at Stake’ and the steps schools and governments 
should take to address this education emergency.


Covid and Education News

REWIND 2021 - Schools reopened, but learning continued to suffer 
<https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/rewind-2021-schools-reopened-but-learning-continued-to-suffer/article38040502.ece>
Despite schools reopening in a phased manner this year, students have 
been unable to grasp lessons taught in the offline classes as they have 
forgotten basic foundational skills or have not picked up the basic 
concepts in many core subjects.

Preventing a lost decade 
<https://www.unicef.org/reports/unicef-75-preventing-a-lost-decade>
This UNICEF report lays out the work in front of us by taking stock of 
the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on children and the road to respond and 
recover to reimagine the future for every child.

Children and schooling in the post-COVID-19 era 
<https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/children-and-schooling-in-the-post-covid-19-era/article37918167.ece>
“India will have to confront bitter facts if it wants to prepare a 
recovery plan of any credible and practical value” writes Krishna Kumar

Should Govt Reopen Schools Amid Omicron Scare? 
<https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/india-news-meet-10-parents-who-want-schools-to-reopen-despite-omicron-scare/406065>
Citing multiple examples of how children are already exposed to the 
virus to substantiate their claim, these parents show their concurrence 
with the decision of reopening of schools amid Omicron scare as children 
are less susceptible to the disease

No Teacher, No Class: State of the Education Report for India, 2021 
<https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000379115>
Focused on the theme of teachers, teaching and teacher education, this 
UNESCO report attempts to provide an understanding of key aspects of the 
teaching profession, challenges of their intricate teaching routine and 
their professional development and provides recommendations to address 
the challenges facing the teaching profession in India


*NCEE is now on Twitter <https://twitter.com/EduEmergency>and Facebook 
<https://www.facebook.com/EduEmergencyIndia/>. Follow our handles for 
regular updates. *
*Media articles are updated regularly and available on the Education 
Emergency site <https://educationemergency.net/category/media-articles/>
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