Try alternative education methods

The discussion on whether to re-open schools against the advice of health experts is not wise at all. Ordinarily, whenever you encounter a problem with your planned agenda, you seek the best alternative.

On two occasions along the escapement as you climb into Nairobi, I have had to drive back to Naivasha to use the alternative road. The change in both cases was necessitated by accidents that closed the narrow road for hours.

As it is always with mid-stream change of strategy, it was not my choice to drive back in order to go forward. This simple analogy perhaps explains the situation that the entire world is in with respect to education. We cannot use the well-tested road, but there is an alternative.  

The Covid-19 pandemic is unprecedented and no one will with any confidence tell you when it will be over. We simply have to help ourselves with whatever we have. Fortunately, much of the education curricula now is in digital formats.

Technology has made it possible to deliver education to virtually every child at a cheaper cost than the current industrial model using the factory line mould.  

Resistance to Change

The problem is that people take a long time to change especially where they are used to certain conveniences.

That we can experiment with our children at the risk of contracting a dangerous viral disease in order for us to be able to get time to go to work or do other things is ridiculous. 

Some teachers fear the mention of the word computer, which they see as the enemy that will destroy their future. The future will affect everybody in the workplace and the only secret to sustaining your job is lifelong learning.

For parents and teachers, it is time to take greater responsibility in bringing up our children. Even without Covid-19, it was clear that the education system was not helping the economy become more competitive. 

The time for rote learning is over. The economy needs productive workers and not parrots reciting what they have learnt.

Opportunity in Covid

We must see Covid-19 as a massive opportunity to introduce new modes of teaching with less expenditure. In the 2020/21 budget, education received Sh505.2 billion or approximately $50 billion, much of it going to the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) for recurrent expenditure (mostly teachers’ salaries).

Earlier, a significant amount of money was spent in providing last mile infrastructure (electricity and broadband) to schools. Reports from the ICT Board indicate that already 97 percent of the schools have these infrastructures. 

Devices remain a challenge but savings from the past eight months that students have stayed at home could very easily buy tablets for every primary and high school child. At least we could start with candidates in standard 8 and Form IV.  

Indeed, in the past, teachers and many other people studied at home to join Universities. They were referred to as private students. Many of them passed to change their careers. How is that it is difficult to do the same today? We could do even better since communication technologies have enabled us to access educational content anytime.  

If there was enough will, there would be a way in this sustained standoff between the waiters of normalcy and mavericks who want to give technology a chance.  

In my discussions with teachers and other stakeholders, the major issue that they believe cannot be resolved by digital solutions is the aspect of exams. The exam issue was also echoed at a recent UNESCO Covid-19 Education Webinar.

The Ugandan Director, Basic and Secondary Education, Ministry of Education, Mr Ismael Mulindwa, said: “We cannot do away with exams - parents believe in them, so does the wider community.” 

He further explained that high stake exams are considered an “ultimate outcome” of the education system. 

“It’s a very fragile situation. Parents and students are worried.” 

To adapt, the Ugandan Government is reviewing the curriculum and moving towards formative assessments. Mr Mulindwa noted that “We emphasise self- assessments and home-based assessment, so that at the end of the day, when they come back to school, they have not lost too much.” Clearly, Uganda has a clear way forward.

A Unesco survey of several countries revealed that 58 countries of them have postponed or rescheduled exams, 23 introduced alternative methods such as online or home-based testing, 22 maintained exams while in 11 countries, they were cancelled altogether. 

Kenya postponed exams to April 2021 even  though there is no indication that the pandemic will ease out by then.

Unesco’s Gwang-Chol Chang noted a distinct trend towards online testing, but he emphasised that “not all subjects and competencies can be assessed online or by phone.” 

Looking beyond school closures, he advised that “we need to assess learners’ progress to identify learning gaps, and offer remedial and accelerated learning and assessment when schools reopen.” This perhaps is what the country ought to be doing at the moment.

From the Unesco webinar, it was clear that the problem of examinations was a southern hemisphere issue. Many states in the northern hemisphere use standardised assessment models that students can take any time they feel ready to take the exam. 

In some cases, students can re-take the exam unlike the southern hemisphere where exams are used to limit access to the university. It's about time we embraced standardised assessments. 

I could be wrong in my assumptions but in my view, such postulations can orchestrate a national debate on the best way forward in education. The tendency to just sit and wait could eventually turn out to be an expensive process. 

Nobody in the world can predict with certainty when the pandemic will be over but we can work around it just like taking a detour when the road is blocked ahead.   

In fact, there is evidence that the virus is going nowhere and there may never be a vaccine. There have been a number of coronaviruses and none has a vaccine. We perhaps should be thinking of a permanent new normal.

The writer is a professor of entrepreneurship at University of Nairobi’s School of Business.