Session
Organizer 1: Gayani Hurulle, LIRNEasia
Organizer 2: Sujata Gamage, LIRNEasia
Organizer 3: Tara de Mel, Education Forum Sri Lanka
Speaker 1: Sujata Gamage, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 2: Kagnarith Chea, Private Sector, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 3: Aslam Hayat, Private Sector, Asia-Pacific Group
Speaker 4: Helani Galpaya, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Tara de Mel, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Tara de Mel, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Gayani Hurulle, Civil Society, Asia-Pacific Group
Panel - Auditorium - 90 Min
Social inequality and the pandemic: What can be learned from the COVID-19 pandemic context about the relationship between digital inequality and social and economic inequality? Similarly, what lessons can be drawn with respect to the pandemic and Internet-related human rights? What does this suggest about policy approaches for digitalisation and digital inclusion?
Inclusion, rights and stakeholder roles and responsibilities: What are/should be the responsibilities of governments, businesses, the technical community, civil society, the academic and research sector and community-based actors with regard to digital inclusion and respect for human rights, and what is needed for them to fulfil these in an efficient and effective manner?
Beginning around March 2020, schools across the world had to close at once for the first time since World War II. The health crisis created by the pandemic, as well as its economic consequences, are high priorities for governments. Unfortunately, the gravity of the Covid-19 education crisis is yet to be fully appreciated. We will recover eventually from the pandemic; We will recover from the economic crisis too; But, the long-term effects of the loss of education for children will last a generation or more. As António Guterres, Secretary General of the UN said:
“Covid has led to the largest disruption in education ever. It is a generational catastrophe that would waste untold human potential, undermine decades of progress in getting children to school and exacerbate existing inequalities.”
UNESCO reports that online platforms were the most used means by the governments to deliver education while schools remain closed, with 83 percent of countries using this method. However, this allowed for potentially reaching only about a quarter of schoolchildren worldwide .Globally, 3 out of 4 students who cannot be reached by the remote learning policies come from rural areas and/or belong to the poorest households. UNESCO recommends that countries do not rely on any single remote learning channel to reach all children in the short-term, while in the long-term giving priority to expanding access to the Internet and other digital solutions for all children to reduce learning vulnerabilities.
Financing and regulation of digital solutions is a major issue in reaching these educational goals. Several governments in the Global South wishing to provide telecommunication services to those who are unconnected have chosen the Universal Service Fund (USF) as the principal policy instrument. However, there is evidence that monies directly or indirectly collected from users of telecommunication services are lying unspent in these funds. Taxation is another issue to be addressed. If telecommunication providers are to expand services to hitherto unserviced areas, the tax regime should not stifle the innovations required.
4. Quality Education
4.1
4.5
4.6
4.a
9. Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
9.1
9.a
9.c
Targets: The proposal looks to identify mechanisms through which inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all (SDG 4) can be achieved in the Global South by bridging gaps in access to information and communication technology (SDG 9; 9.1; 9.a). Upgrading soft and hard infrastructure (SDG 9.c) to facilitate access to education can be a vehicle to creating inclusive and effective learning environments for all (SDG 4.1; SDG 4.a). This would be particularly relevant in lockdown situations, as the lack of access to these technologies could lead to a lack of access to education, widening existing disparities (leading to learning loss, and students dropping out of formal education). This is likely to also be a conduit to achieving gender quality and inclusion in education (SDG 4.5). It could therefore help ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy by 2030 (SDG 4.6).
Description:
Exclusion from access and connectivity to the Internet became all too real for parents of I billion or more children world-wide for whom schools have been closed for more than a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of the proposed workshop is to uncover lessons in digital interventions and analog complements for inclusive access to education during the present pandemic and prepare a roadmap for expanding access to Internet and other digital solutions for all children post-pandemic, with schools perhaps serving as centers of internet connectivity for communities to which these children belong. The workshop, which focuses on experiences in the Global South, will be informed by the results of national surveys on access to education during COVID carried out in India, Sri Lanka, Peru, Columbia, Nigeria and South Africa by LIRNEasia and partner organizations.The diverse group of experts who comprise the panel (educators, telecommunications experts and edtech researchers), together with the participants will reflect on the results of the survey and the good practices presented to contribute to the proposed roadmap.
Dissemination plans for the surveys which form the basis of this proposed session are already in place. In addition to those, the organizers and/or panelists will prepare a concept paper specific to the proposed session and improve on it for publication after the session. Policy recommendations resulting from the panel will be shared through UNESCO Global Collective for Digital Learning in which LIRNEasia is a member, the Worldwide Commission to Educate All Kids Post Pandemic in which Dr. Tara de Mel is a member, and the regular dissemination channels of LIRNEasia (Asia), Research ICT Africa (Africa) and Instituto De Peruanos (Latin America).
The proposed panel is a fully online panel. Dr. Tara de Mel has extensive experience in managing interactions and participation in online panels. Since the intervention of COViD-19 in March 2020 she has moderated over 15 panels on education access issues (https://educationforum.lk/category/events/). She also has experience working with a Global Commission on the same topic. She will be assisted by Ms. Gayani Hurulle who brings in experience of managing multi-stakeholder dialogues in the telecom policy arena.
A preparatory call will be organized to allow the participants to get acquainted with one another, to allow for more open discussion. Questions from the audience will be taken in both written and verbal form. The organizers will also explore using Q&A and polling platforms such as Slido to encourage greater participation
Note: A longer (90 minute) session has been requested to allow for maximum dialogue, but it can be scaled down to a 60 minute panel if necessary.
Usage of IGF Official Tool.