TURIN. According to the latest UNICEF estimates, due to the total and partial closure of schools in Latin America and the Caribbean, 114 million students do not receive face-to-face education. One year after the start of the pandemic, the region of Latin America and the Caribbean remains the one in the world with the highest number of children who are not yet receiving schooling. On average, children in this region have lost 158 days of school in the classroom. To date, only seven countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have fully opened schools, while in 12 countries and territories, schools remain completely closed. In the rest of the region, the classrooms are partially closed. Despite governments’ efforts to ensure continuity with distance education through virtual platforms, via radio and TV, school disruption has had catastrophic impacts on children’s learning, protection, health, mental health and future socio-economic prospects. ‘Unicef.
“Nowhere else in the world have so many children been left without school in attendance,” said Jean Gough, UNICEF regional director for Latin America and the Caribbean. “It is the worst education crisis that Latin America and the Caribbean have ever faced in modern history. Many children have already missed a year of school in attendance; now they start to miss another school year. Every additional day without school in attendance puts the most vulnerable children at risk of dropping out of school forever, ”he added. The longer children are out of school, the less likely they are to return. It is estimated that more than 3 million children in the region could drop out of school permanently due to the pandemic. In a region where before Covid-19 several students did not reach basic levels of arithmetic, reading and writing in elementary and middle schools, the impact of a prolonged school interruption on learning will be severe and long-lasting. According to a recent World Bank report, 71% of students in Latin America and the Caribbean enrolled in lower secondary school may not understand a short text.
Before the pandemic, the figure was 55%. The percentage could rise to 77% if schools are closed for a further 3 months. With the closure of schools, approximately 45 million students in 24 countries in the region have been supported by UNICEF through remote programs and 9 million children, parents and carers have received mental health and psychosocial support. in communities. ‘Distance learning programs should continue and be expanded to reach more and more children, but they can never replace face-to-face education with a teacher, especially for the most vulnerable children. We are not asking for all schools to reopen everywhere and at the same time, we are asking for schools to be the first to reopen and the last to close. Several countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have made important progress in prioritizing an urgent and gradual reopening of schools. Now is the time for others in the region to follow the same path, ”added Gough.
Unicef ”recognizes the efforts of governments and education authorities in the region who, together with partners and social partners, continue to contain the risks associated with the interruption of education and the impact on children”. Last week, education ministers from some Central American countries and the Dominican Republic pledged to prioritize an urgent and gradual reopening of schools. Unicef “appreciates this fundamental decision, which now needs to be implemented as a matter of urgency, and asks school authorities in other parts of Latin America and the Caribbean to follow the same path. Given the urgent needs to raise awareness of the importance of school reopening and the impacts it has on children in the region, it is launching the #SchoolsFirstNotLast campaign reflecting the state of classrooms in the region, millions of empty chairs waiting for students to return to the classroom to resume studying ».