Challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic
Among the many challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Debates, and arguments among the education faculties, parents, and political leaders brought different impacts into the education system to the Indian reservations. The Indian’s reservations are less advantaged. They possess social justice security weaknesses in mass mobilization Green (D. E., & Tonnesen 1991). The students from those reservations suffer less access to education, which exposes them to crimes, poverty, teenage pregnancy, and unemployment, and drug abuse. Covid-19 brings a huge additional drawback to such challenges due to schools’ closure, relatively unattainable measures to facilitate home-based education. As a result, many perspectives, guidelines, and practices have been drawn from the Indian Educational Board (BIE) parents, Government, and guardian perspective toward the education to the students from the Indiana reservation in different areas of the world. Additionally, future-oriented measures propose research for a better understanding of the and solutions.
An unequal educational crisis is one of the biggest challenges caused by covid-19 pandemic. In particular, the Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center at CSUSM, California, oversaw the Cal State San Marcos survey. They drew that, out of ninety-seven tribe representation, only a quarter of Indian students in California can easily access a computer and reliable internet. Furthermore, the research showed 44% of learning difficulties to disabled students; among them is a 13% who cannot access any disability specialists, whereas 19% has at least a privilege to acquire limited access. Others depend on schools to feed themselves, and this adversely affects their psychological wellness; most students lacked enough physical exercise, whereas others faced a decrease in their income (Aristovnik, Keržič, Ravšelj, Tomaževič, & Umek, 2020). The research was significant to the community of the Indians as it revealed essential aspects as to why they suffer disproportionally in their population. They propose continuous studies to identify the remedies and their solutions.
The covid-19 pandemic caused the closure of schools worldwide. Concerning rural areas across Indian society, many teachers lost their job. Most of them relocated to their ancestral sites, the slums, with no hope of returning to cities. Most children are delayed to attain education since access to the internet is not available; there are fewer books facilitated to them and a lack of close monitoring from their teachers. Different campaigns rose to curb the challenge (Dyer, 2020): In rural areas of Maharashtra, people demand vaccinations for the students to be in schools. Nevertheless, this would cause a couple of students’ delays in an unconducive educational environment. For example, small houses in the area would become inconvenient the students; parents also struggle to make end meals, which would increase the student’s starvation and the high level of limited access to facilities like computers, the internet, and good books affect the students’ learning.
Debates to reopen schools caught the attention of different ideas from states, teachers, parents, and guidelines, and various faculties. Other approaches have been adapted to minimize the spread of the disease. The use of masks, social distancing, and cleaning protocols were recommended. As a result, many students are still challenged to reopen schools even after the worldwide lockdown closure due to the rushed period as directed by the state. For example, the Maharashtra cabinet decided to open schools on 7th October and later, the Varsha, Gaikwad, State’s education minister announce classes reopening from 9th to 12th of the November, which was relatively enough for parents’ preparations (“Minister of basic education and minister of higher education and training: South Africa,” 2020). On another dimension, disagreements arise between leaders of the tribes to schools with those schools operated by the Bureau of Indian education. The Indian Education Bureau ultimately operates the brick and mortar schools, which is only fifty-five out of 187 schools.
In contrast, the tribally operated schools take the rest 132 schools. BIE dominates in the policy-making reporting that they actively include tribal and its stakeholder’s consultation. The tribal leader opposes this statement as the BIE letter addresses its schools’ policies under its operation alone. The BIE urges the tribe leader to formulate directives that will ensure continuity studies to its student.
A general recommendation from the education corporates concludes that reservation schools should possess virtual and online learning options. On the other hand, the Trump government administration pushes the public schools to open with the in-person institution. Parents and BIE directors seem to oppose this directive. Particularly in the Navajo reservation, parents are ordered to take their students to in-person institutions. Together with parents, the BIE argues that COVID-19 cases of infections and death continue to rise regarding basis per-capita, therefore in-person institutions to expose children to the tragedy. The BIE attempts to answer the question related to the student’s welfare concerning in-person institutions, but the Government makes no response to the BIE request. The educational states’ debate and disagreements trigger a tribal-political insight that currently affects societies.
Indian reservation students are challenged with the employed measures to facilitate virtual and online learning((Appiah-Kubi & Nichwitz 2020). Most children in the reservations engage in household work and farming, which disrupted online class sessions’ attention. Parents’ misconduct also promotes t obstacles to online learning for not support their children. Concerning the recent report of the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER), only 19% of rural Maharashtra students can attend live online classes (Yadav, 2020). The survey was conducted in 33 districts, with data from 6,800 households from the state, in September 2020. Student counseling is required to curb these challenges and enable them to focus on their study thoroughly. They are sending teachers into the reservations to teach students in their homes and to continue their learning. It helps the students lag as there is no internet connectivity and online learning is not feasible.
Nevertheless, most of these locations are still under restrictions of peoples gathering, and their borders are still closed. One example is the Oglala Sioux Tribe. Therefore non-residential teachers cannot complete the locations boarders unless they are practically obligated. Also, it is hard for them to teach the students in groups due to restrictions.
In summary, there are different responses to educational challenges impacted by COVID 19 pandemic. Such includes decisions to close schools, adopt online learning, reopen schools, and observe guidelines to avoid disease infections. The responses give rise to the need to conduct future-oriented measures that will help improve the underlying conditions in the Indian reservations that relate to Trible and political affairs and facilitate proper education techniques for Indian students.
References
Green, D. E., & Tonnesen, T. V. (1991). American Indians: Social Justice and Public Policy. Ethnicity and Public Policy Series, Volume IX. The University of Wisconsin System, Institute on Race and Ethnicity, PO Box 413, Milwaukee, WI 53201.
Appiah-Kubi, P., & Nichwitz, J. (n.d.). Students’ perception of collaborative online international learning. 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access Proceedings. doi:10.18260/1-2—35248
Aristovnik, A., Keržič, D., Ravšelj, D., Tomaževič, N., & Umek, L. (2020). Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the life of higher education students: A global perspective. doi:10.20944/preprints202008.0246.v2
Dyer, O. (2020). COVID-19: Pandemic is having a “severe” impact on non-communicable disease care, WHO survey finds. BMJ, m2210. doi:10.1136/bmj.m2210
Minister of basic education and minister of higher education and training: South Africa. (, 2020). The SAGE Encyclopedia of Higher Education. doi:10.4135/9781529714395.n387
U, S. M., & Unni, M. V. (2020). The paradigm shift in the Indian education system during COVID19: Impact, opportunities, and trends. SSRN Electronic Journal. doi:10.2139/ssrn.3669571
Yadav, A. K. (2020). Impact of online teaching on students’ education and health in India during the pandemic of COVID-19. Coronaviruses, 01. doi:10.2174/2666796701999201005212801
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