The new three Rs of education: Reflect, Rethink and Refocus

The closure of educational institutions has affected 94 percent of the world’s student population. The UN’s theme for 2021 is Recover and Revitalise Education for the Covid-19 Generation.

My thoughts are that perhaps additional ‘Rs’ to this theme could be: ‘Reflect,’ ‘Rethink’ and ‘Refocus’. The global community is currently considering what ‘education’ should look like in order to equip students of the 21st century with the skills, attitudes and knowledge needed for their lives ahead.

I have been proud to witness the re-evolution of ‘thinking’ in schools here in the UAE and also around the world where educators have taken it upon themselves to reevaluate past practices and innovate in light of current, complex challenges.

I am so proud of my fellow dedicated professionals that have been at the forefront of the world’s greatest educational challenge since the last world war. They have diligently worked as a global education community in solving the multiple, complex, personal and professional problems thrown at them over the last 10 months.

Only this week in a school governance meeting, one of our school leaders spoke about ‘business as unusual’ which made me truly reflect on the current situation.

Andreas Schleicher, director of education and skills at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) stated on the International Day of Education that “what children will remember from this crisis is the teacher who called them when they were in difficulty” and “helping pupils stay motivated and focused on school during the pandemic will be one of the biggest challenges for teachers in 2021”.

Andreas Schleicher, director of education and skills at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

In light of Mr Schleicher’s comment, we should also recognise those that have supported the global education community through their endeavours to create as normal an education experience as is humanely possible.

I have witnessed countless selfless and enterprising acts that have demonstrated the true meaning of leadership within our communities.

Parents have been under enormous pressures in their daily lives coping with their normal routines being turned upside down, worrying about job security and acting as ‘support teachers’ during lockdown situations.

I have been truly astounded by the positivity of people and those that have taken it upon themselves to act as friends, mentors and exemplars to their communities.

Whether these quiet acts of selflessness have been exhibited by fully respecting government guidelines and reminding others of their responsibilities, encouraging colleagues to avail themselves of help or by simply expressing their gratitude to individuals and institutions; their help and support has been immense and invaluable.

It has been during these past 10 months that we have witnessed ‘true heroes’ in our communities, committed to continuity in the face of true adversity.

The closure of educational institutions has affected 94 percent of the world’s student population

While positives have certainly emerged, including the incredible and growing contribution of EdTech and innovation in online learning, I genuinely worry about the loss of ‘face to face, bricks and mortar’ education; not just to relieve incredible stresses and strains on the family household but also for the social and mental well-being of children.

There is undoubtedly an intensification of digital inequality and, to be honest, of wholistic education and indeed economic inequality, especially as lockdown continues across the globe.

There is much debate in the education community about how we create a ‘level playing field’ for those students who are considering the next steps in their education or career and also how to ‘close the gap’ for young people, especially from disadvantaged backgrounds and geographical localities, who have undoubtedly lost up to as year of learning already.

In addition, we have an increasing crisis of assessment and testing. With the cancellation of most externally assessed, written examinations a massive challenge is how to fairly evaluate up to 13 years of achievement for our graduating students.

It is feared that those areas where students have missed most schooling in their last year will suffer, compared with areas where Covid-19 has not been as disruptive.

In short, schools and exam boards will have the Herculean task of trying to look at differential learning loss and to monitor the variation in the impact of the pandemic on students across the world.

We have been extremely fortunate here in the UAE where proactive government measures have lessened the impact on our students; with many students being able to opt for onsite face to face learning, or a form of blended learning.

The UAE has led the world in its vaccination programme. The rapid roll out of immunisation for staff in schools and large sectors of the population has further boosted confidence in parents that schools are now very safe and secure places to send their children to study.

We have been greatly supported by a genuine partnership with government and regulators to keep our schools safe and open under a unity of purpose captured in our #inthistogether.

This pathway certainly provides hope for a future return to some of the securities and benefits of the education that we lived and loved prior to the pandemic.

My genuine hope is that countries and schools around the world can follow this direction. When all is said and done, distance learning has been fantastic, innovative and creative, and we need to capture those positives, for certain, but nothing beats the sense of community, social inclusion and wider learning that comes from the magic of children learning and playing together, in person, in school.

But I do realise that the world has changed forever, that we can’t be nostalgic and that the disruptive change of the pandemic, especially with regard to the benefits that EdTech advances have brought, are here to stay.

A recent OECD survey found that graduating students’ priorities were ‘joy, happiness, contentment, being the best at what we do and living a full life.’

However, in another OECD poll taken in August 2020, nearly 80 percent said that “Their career aspirations, the jobs they sought, the education paths to take to get there seem forever changed.”

Again, this sense of ‘business as unusual’. That is why we need to, rather than recover what we had: ‘Reflect’ on the past ‘Rethink’ our offerings and ‘Refocus’ on the rapid changes needed to be made to the current fragile education system.

Our present-day offering, little changed over the past two centuries, needs a rapid overhaul to make it robust, resilient and relevant to best serve students now and into the future.

The global community is currently considering what ‘education’ should look like in order to equip students of the 21st century with the skills, attitudes and knowledge needed for their lives ahead

Enterprising employers are increasingly looking at ‘character’ over ‘qualifications’ and ‘adaptability’ over ‘academic results’ when recruiting future generations of leaders.

Indeed, perhaps the present crisis in the assessment system will be the disrupter that was always required to throw out the 19th century examination hall that served many, but not all students, in terms of truly displaying their skills, aptitudes and talents.

Several prominent historical leaders have oft alleged that the Chinese alphabet character for ‘crisis’ could also be interpreted as ‘opportunity’ – unfortunately their translations were a little awry.

However, if we can run with the spirit of their optimistic transcription, the global education community now has a unique, crisis driven chance to overhaul the ‘status quo’, to transform current education options and to maximise opportunities for future generations of students.

Alan Williamson is CEO of education provider Taaleem