My Research Question: “How is education being affected around the world due to the covid-19 pandemic?”
For my final project I will be investigating the impact of the covid-19 pandemic on education throughout the world. I also will focus on how the pandemic has affected students of inequality and try to address what we can learn about our education system in a time like this. Since my final project takes place currently it has been a challenge to find primary sources on the events of the past 10 months. However statistics have shown that education has been greatly effected due to the pandemic, the societal structure that school creates is responsible for the care of millions of students. Due to social distancing measures the classroom has turned virtual, and students are no long under the care or supervision of educators during the day time. The pandemic in turn has put millions of at risk youth being in unstable environments while unable to attend school to get the support they desperately need. The pandemic also has an effect on educators because teaching is their livelihood and without in person instruction many educators are out of work. When schools can properly function like they normally would, the fabric of community is ripped throughout the world, and it is of my interest to find out more on how the world is handling this situation.
For my format I plan on presenting my final project in the form of a podcast. I will attach a breakdown of what I plan on presenting to the listener, I think because my topic encompasses a lot of different problems it will suit me best to make a podcast. From the podcasts I have listened to I feel it is a great way to be informative while seeming interesting and educational.
Secondary source #1:
The Harvard Gazette: This article in the Harvard Gazette contains a Q&A with former secretary of education for Massachusetts, Paul Reville. In this Q&A Reville discusses how school closures due to the pandemic has increased the sense of urgency for major education reform as the pandemic in Reville’s opinion has brought to light the many inequalities and short comings in the education system in the United States. This source will help me present an expert opinion on my subject matter into my final project.
Mineo, L. (2020, April 10). The pandemic’s impact on education. Retrieved September 27, 2020, from https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/04/the-pandemics-impact-on-education/
Secondary source #2:
High Point University’s summarization of what are some of the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on education. This source bring to light what has changed in education since the start of the pandemic. I will use this source to bring up some points and introduce the scale of how severely education is being affected to the virus.
Lewison, K. (2020, June 24). What is the Impact of Coronavirus on Education? Retrieved October 01, 2020, from https://www.uopeople.edu/blog/impact-of-coronavirus-on-education/
Primary sources:
“Operating Schools during COVID-19: CDC’s Considerations.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/schools.html.
Goldstein, Dana. “Research Shows Students Falling Months Behind During Virus Disruptions.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 5 June 2020, www.nytimes.com/2020/06/05/us/coronavirus-education-lost-learning.html.
Thomas, Christopher J. “Coronavirus and Challenging Times for Education in Developing Countries.” Brookings, Brookings, 14 Apr. 2020, www.brookings.edu/blog/education-plus-development/2020/04/13/coronavirus-and-challenging-times-for-education-in-developing-countries/.
For my three primary sources i chose sources that serve as informational records of how coronavirus is being handled. My first source is from the CDC which is the guidelines the CDC has given to schools on how they should principle proper social distancing measures and covid safety precautions. My second source is from the New York times chronicling the accounts of students who have fallen behind in their education due to the covid-19 pandemic. My third and final source is an article which presents the statistics from the united nations on school closings around the world. I feel these three sources will serve me well as they provide statistical backing to what I plan on discussing.