Distance teaching during the Covid-19 pandemic and school-related well-being of primary school students

Students' well-being at school influences their motivation for learning and their learning outcomes. One of the challenges for teachers during the school closure due to the Covid-19 pandemic was therefore the school-related well-being of students. This mixed methods research describes the way teachers in Amsterdam, Zaandam and Almere organized their teaching during the (partial) school closure in the first lockdown (March 2020) and analyzed its influence on students' well-being at school. The study focused specifically on well-being of students in relation to their classmates and teacher. 534 students completed a questionnaire about their school related well-being, and 52 teachers were interviewed. On average, there was no difference in students' school related well-being before and after the period of school closure. The interviews revealed differences between teachers regarding the organization of their distance teaching which correlated to the well-being of students. The organization of contact between students, the extent to which students were reached and the nature of the lesson content offered (repetition and/or new material) correlated with students' well-being at school. The results of this research can support schools in organizing distance teaching.

Turkey's transition to face-to-face schooling during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic majorly disrupted conventional schooling and many countries maintained educational services through distance education. The duration of school closures in Turkey was longer than most OECD countries, thus Turkey prioritized school reopenings in the 2021-2022 academic year to mitigate possible negative outcomes of closures. Here we study the compatibility of implications for school reopenings in Turkey with these practices and assess the first semester of face-to-face schooling. METHODS: We have used document analysis to present and compare the practices in Turkey with international practices. We also used a comparative approach to assess the coherence between policies in Turkey and international suggestions. RESULTS: We find that vaccination rates of teachers and education staff are quite high in Turkey. Other practices, mandatory face masks, class-based closures and quarantine policies, are also in agreement with international practices. These steps are supported with frequent cleaning and ventilation of school environments, as well as with social distancing measures in schools. DISCUSSION: Consequently, the rate of daily closed classrooms has been kept below 1%, and the patterns of closures and openings are in general agreement with the changes of positive cases in the Turkish society. The net rate of closed classrooms decreased with the decline of quarantine days in Turkey. We hope that these insights will inform about school openings and contribute to best practices for face-to-face schooling.

A look at educational and gender equality in the public policies of Costa Rica and SpainFF

Education as a fundamental human right and the foundation of a more just and egalitarian society has traditionally been the object of attention of public policies of various kinds. The promotion of equal opportunities between men and women in different social spheres has been a principle, intended by all nations, materialized in inclusive education and social justice as guarantors for a society built upon the foundations of equity and equality. Accordingly, an approach to public policies in Costa Rica and Spain has been made to analyze their treatment of equal educational and gender opportunities. Both countries have historically developed educational and social policies aimed at guaranteeing education for all, preventing segregation and social exclusion, and empowering and strengthening the role of women in all spheres of life. Despite this historical trajectory in pursuit of a just, democratic, and egalitarian society, the new world scenario brought about by COVID-19 forces us to rethink crucial educational and social aspects to overcome the current crisis we are facing. The traditional educational and social challenges are today, more than ever, of significant importance for society as a whole. The world needs new political, economic, labor, and social approaches to address this present situation, and education is the fundamental weapon capable of offering productive answers in the current scenario.

Estimation of the fundamental learning loss and learning poverty related to COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico.

There is evidence of learning loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but there is no related information for Mexico. The objective of the study is to estimate learning loss in reading and numeracy in Mexico. We compared the results of two household surveys conducted in 2019 and 2021. We interviewed 3161 children between 10 and 15 years. We estimated a learning loss according with SES in a range from 0.34-0.45 SD in reading and 0.62-0.82 SD in mathematics by COVID-19 pandemic, and an increase in learning poverty in a range of 25.7%-15.4% in reading and 29.8%-28.8% in numeracy. Gaps in fundamental learning by gender and SES increased. There is an urgent need develop a clear strategy to perform personalized diagnoses and implement remedial courses to address learning loss.