The government should do more to reopen schools, including vaccinating teachers against COVID-19 and importing vaccines that could be given to children, the National Policy Foundation said yesterday.
Kao Yuang-kuang (高永光), convener of the Education, Culture and Sports Division of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-affiliated think tank, made the remarks during a virtual news conference on the shortfalls of remote learning.
Education officials failed to prepare for remote learning, leaving parents to fend for themselves, he said, adding that only 25 percent of townships have the infrastructure to support remote learning.
Citing a poll conducted by the think tank, Kao said that 57.1 to 81.4 percent of university students reported issues with online learning, including Internet connections or equipment problems, low motivation or inefficient online discussion.
The government should put elementary and junior-high school teachers on a priority list for vaccinations, and consider importing Pzifer-BioNTech, Moderna and other vaccines that are being tested for inoculating children younger than 12, he said.
National Alliance of Parents Organizations’ public relations officer Wang Wen-pin (王文賓) said that a survey of teachers and parents conducted by the group showed that 20 percent of children require special instruction, and that people directly involved in pandemic prevention efforts said they have not received enough support for their children’s educational needs.
The study also found that parents reported experiencing anxiety over remote learning, increased friction at home, unfamiliarity with the technology used in remote learning and having no resources to call on for support, he said.
The study, conducted from May 27 to June 2, collected about 4,000 valid responses, he said.
Taiwan Teachers’ Union president Yang Yi-feng (楊益風) said that the digital gap in remote learning has worsened existing educational disparities between rural and urban areas.
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