Impact of lockdown during COVID-19 pandemic on the learning status of undergraduate and postgraduate students of Bangalore

Background: The COVID 19 pandemic has created various impacts on every human's life. COVID 19 lockdown has provoked enormous changes in the education sector which in turn influences the student's life in many aspects. The scope of this study is to understand the impact in both undergraduate and postgraduate students. Aim: This study aims at incisively analyzing the impact of lockdown imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic on graduate students of Bangalore. Method: It is an online survey that encompasses a structural questionnaire with open-ended questions created using Google Forms, which were sent across the students through social media platforms. Results: A total of 115 students from both undergraduate and postgraduate programs have participated in this survey. Simple percentage distribution was estimated to evaluate the pedagogy, opinion on educational decisions, modes of learning, socio-economic conditions, and problems pertaining to academia because of this pandemic. As per this analysis, 80.9% of students faced difficulty due to lockdown. 67% of students thought that their family's income will be affected by this pandemic. 68.7% of students felt stressed, depressed and 52.3% of students could not find a suitable environment in their home to study during this lockdown. When we see this pandemic in an optimistic light, it has created various opportunities such as Digital learning and adoption of new health habits. © 2021. RIGEO. All Rights Reserved.

Challenges encountered by the institutional caretakers of children with special needs during COVID-19 pandemic

Background: The institutional caretakers for children with special needs experienced various challenges during COVID – 19 Pandemic lockdown period. Aim: This study analyses the challenges faced by the caretakers of the children with special needs in institutional care during the COVID-19 Pandemic lockdown situation in Bangalore, India. Methods: This research followed the case study method to get a deeper insight into the quality of services provided by caregivers in institutions to support children with special needs and their challenges during the covid-19 pandemic. The study was conducted during the containment period of the COVID-19 pandemic situation from April to September 2020 among 14 caretakers from Government and non-government residential homes for children with special needs. Results: The challenges vary with care takers who were providing services to children with special needs in the institution and family. The care takers were overburdened due to their dual role to perform with children and parents. Conclusions: The study recommends strengthening the government system to facilitate the stakeholders of children with special needs for their wellbeing during any emergencies by engaging more professionals. Stressing the enhancement of the capacity of the parents is significant in any crisis.