School closures during COVID-19 have impacted the learning and social emotional well-being of a generation of students. According to UNESCO, 192 countries implemented some sort of school closure over the past year, affecting over 90% of learners worldwide at some point during the pandemic. The consequences will be immense and long lasting.
As the education sector learns from the pandemic, it is clear that we cannot afford to leave another generation of children behind. The struggle of children with disabilities to realise their right to education continues. Removing barriers to access and thrive in education is an imperative that requires cross-sectoral collaboration and investment.
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the education of over one billion people, including many of our most marginalized being impacted the most; this includes–but is not limited to: girls, children with disabilities, and children in conflict settings. Many of these children already faced challenges to access quality, inclusive education prior to the pandemic, which has now exacerbated these problems. On March 31, we co-hosted an event, in conjunction with the Civil Society Policy Forum during the World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, that discussed the issue of education financing during COVID-19 response and recovery to reach the most marginalized.
Inclusive Education and Early Childhood Community of Practice members Salzburg Global Seminar, Humanity & Inclusion, Amal Alliance, and GCE-US jointly organized a workshop on March 1, 2021, Zero Discrimination Day, that looked the teacher training and inclusive education. The interactive workshop featured speakers from the UNESCO Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report, Carey Institute for Global Good, UNICEF, World Learning, and the Wellbeing Project.
Learn about the Inclusive Education and Early Childhood Community of Practice and ways you can get involved!
See here to read about GCE-US Senior Fellow, Shruti Nallappa's experience and obeservations with helping her little brother at home during COVID-19 and resources that provide support to educators, students and families who are working with children on the autism spectrum during the pandemic.
See here to read about Girls Education International and their latest international curriculum that was launched in celebration of the International Day of the Girl Child. Blog written by Girls Education International's Executive Director, Kate Schelbe.
Learn more about the Leave No Child Behind: Invest in the Early Years Global Report Launch held on November 19, 2020.
On Monday, October 5 -- World Teacher’s Day -- ActionAid, Education International, Light for the World, and others facilitated a discussion regarding a joint study that looks at the current state of inclusive education, and the realistic requirements for investing in an education workforce that can support disability inclusive education systems in Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria and Tanzania.
43% of children under 5 years of age in low-income and middle-income countries are at risk of not reaching their full developmental potential. This is set to increase as a result of socio-economic, physical and mental health consequences related to the COVID-19 pandemic. On September 29, 2020, Investing in our Future: Nurturing Human Capital in a COVID Complex World at the 2020 IMF/World Bank Group Annual Meetings, Civil Society Policy Forum examined the impact of major disruptions in services for the nurturing care and development of all young children as a result of COVID-19, presented a new Cost of Inaction for Young Children tool, and identified pathways to increase investments for young children.
