Curated by the Knowledge Team of ICS Career GPS
Education
Students left behind in wake of COVID-19, teachers rush to address learning gaps
Excerpts from article by Fareeha Iftikhar and Kainat Sarfaraz, published in Hindustan Times
The government has over the past few weeks reopened schools for classes 9 to 12 for the first time since classes moved online in March last year.
With students in the national capital returning to school after nearly 10 months and board examinations due in May, teachers must cover learning gaps borne out of the prolonged closure of educational institutions due to COVID-19. School officials said the problem is more acute for students who had limited access to online classes and will now be forced to hurriedly make up for a lost time.
Focus on board exams
Thoe government has over the past few weeks reopened schools for classes 9 to 12 for the first time since classes moved online in March last year. Teachers and principals in several schools said their focus will be on preparing students for board exams that are scheduled to start on May 4.
“Many students who don’t have smartphones and Internet connectivity could not attend online classes or access digital study material in the last 10 months, and are now lagging. Besides, students have completely lost the habit of writing. We are now planning to divide the syllabus into small portions. We will teach a portion for 10 days and then take an exam. This way, students will cover everything and get into the habit of writing once again,” he said.
The mathematics challenge
For mathematics teachers at government schools, the challenge is even greater. They said they are now focussing on topics that hold the most weightage in the exams — theorems, construction, and simple statistics.
Gopal Krishnan, a mathematics teacher at Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya in Subhash Nagar, said, “It was difficult for many students to study math online. We don’t have enough time to teach and revise the entire syllabus during offline classes, and will have to focus more on students who are weak in the subject. We are planning to give crash courses to students ahead of their board exams where we will only teach important topics.”
Left behind during e-learning phase
Several students also said they struggling to get back on track, after having effectively been left behind during a significant chunk of the online-learning phase.
Amir Hussain, a Class 10 student at a government school in Jama Masjid area, said, “I could not attend online classes till September because I did not have a smartphone. I started studies when my mother managed to get me a phone in October. I am glad that the schools have reopened but I am still struggling to catch up with my classmates.”
Schools said many underperforming students are those who were promoted to Classes 10 and 12 in August through a revised promotion policy that took into account test scores, assignments as well as grace marks. Sujata Tamta, head at Sarvodaya Kanya Vidyalaya in Molarband, said they have identified these students and assigned teachers who can monitor their progress.
“On an average, one teacher has to oversee five students. They will monitor the student’s progress, coordinate with other subject teachers, communicate with the ward and identify areas where they need help. Offline classes have helped us focus our attention on such students, but we are concerned since they joined late,” she said.
Out of touch students, a concern
Teachers at government schools also raised concerns over students who have been out of touch since March last year. HT on Thursday reported that around 31,000 students enrolled in 1,030 state government schools (from kindergarten to Class 10) remain untraceable.
An official at Delhi government’s education department said, “Efforts are being made to provide all possible assistance to students for their board exam preparation. There are some students who could not attend online classes. Schools have been advised to focus more on such students.”
Career
Image: Pixabay/fancycrave1)
The post-pandemic future of work – according to 3,000 CEOs from around the world
Excerpts from article by Victoria Masterson, published in weforum.org
- Agility, technology and regulation are key priorities for chief executives post-pandemic, IBM finds in its survey of 3,000 global CEOs.
- The report also identifies five key factors that set outperforming CEOs apart.
- Employment and livelihood crises are one of the top risks for 2021, according to the World Economic Forum.
A survey of 3,000 chief executives lifts the lid on corporate priorities after coronavirus. Getting rid of distractions, discarding outmoded traditions and exploiting unique advantages are the new areas of focus, IBM says in its 2021 CEO Study.
“The COVID-19 pandemic challenged many leaders to focus on what’s essential, like their people,” says Mark Foster, senior vice president at IBM Services
Advantages
Five key areas set outperformers apart from underperformers:
1. Leadership – out-performers consistently show “decisive strategic leadership”, with 85% citing leadership as critical to business performance.
2. Technology – the CEOs of out-performing firms are most focused on emerging technologies and the risks and opportunities they bring.
3. Employees – the remote workplace created by COVID is among the most cited areas of future focus by out-performers, with 50% of CEOs identifying it as a key challenge. This is double the rate of under- performers.
4. Open innovation – 63% of out-performers identify partnerships as key to getting ahead with innovation, compared to only 32% of under-performers.
5. Cyber security – 26% more out-performers than under-performers cite cyber risk as one of their greatest challenges in the next few years.
Lessons
By drilling down into its data, IBM found three core areas of focus among CEOs.
1. Customers – 48% of respondents cited customers, clients and citizens as their most important business priorities. This includes creating positive customer experiences and focusing on ethics and integrity. “They know that trying to exploit or take advantage of customers or partners is a short-term, loser’s game,” IBM says.
2. Products – for 30% of the 3,000 CEOs, products and services are the priority, with a focus on innovation.
3. Operations – the other 20% of CEOs in the study prioritize operations, with a focus on efficiency, distribution, pricing structure and transparency. “In the context of COVID-19, this is the group hit hardest during 2020,” IBM says. “Among even the outperformers in this cohort, 60% report expected revenue declines for the year, a figure twice the size of outperformers in the customer- and product-focused groups.”
Top risks
In its Global Risks Report 2021, the World Economic Forum examined the risks and consequences of widening inequalities and societal fragmentation.
“Job losses, a widening digital divide, disrupted social interactions, and abrupt shifts in markets could lead to dire consequences and lost opportunities for large parts of the global population,” the report warns.
While the Forum’s COVID-19 Risks Outlook, published last year, tapped into the views of nearly 350 senior risk professionals on the most likely challenges ahead.
Two-thirds of respondents identified a prolonged global recession as a top concern for business.
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the article mentioned above are those of the author(s). They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of ICS Career GPS or its staff.)
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