Quantcast
ZME Science
  • CoronavirusNEW
  • News
  • Environment
    • Climate
    • Animals
    • Renewable Energy
    • Eco tips
    • Environmental Issues
    • Green Living
  • Health
    • Alternative Medicine
    • Anatomy
    • Diseases
    • Genetics
    • Mind & Brain
    • Nutrition
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
    • Feature Post
    • Art
    • Great Pics
    • Design
    • Fossil Friday
    • AstroPicture
    • GeoPicture
    • Did you know?
    • Offbeat
  • More
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Our stance on climate change
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
No Result
View All Result
ZME Science

No Result
View All Result
ZME Science
No Result
View All Result
Home Science News

Half of the world’s schoolchildren lack a computer under lockdown

Disparities are particularly acute in low-income countries.

Tibi Puiu by Tibi Puiu
April 22, 2020
in News
Credit: Pixabay.

Billions of people around the world have been forced into lockdown almost overnight. Some have adapted well, managing to shift to working remotely. For school children and teachers, this transition has proven more problematic as courses and assessments have moved online. However, for around half of the world’s school and university students, online schooling is a luxury as they lack a computer with internet access or even a mobile internet connection in some situations.

This statistic was recently highlighted by UNESCO, the UN’s educational agency.

“Even for teachers in countries with reliable information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure and household connectivity, the rapid transition to online learning has been challenging,” it added.

“For teachers in regions where ICT and other distance methodologies are less available, the transition has been even more difficult or impossible.”

A total of roughly 826 million students do not have a home computer and some 706 million lack an internet connection, making it impossible to access “distance learning”.

Schools and universities are closed in 191 countries around the world. By having so many students unable to keep up with their studies, UNESCO argues that the divides between rich and poor will become even broader.

“Disparities are particularly acute in low-income countries: in sub-Saharan Africa, 89 percent of learners do not have access to household computers and 82 percent lack internet access,” a UNESCO statement reads.

Although they might lack computers or even electricity, it is true that many have low-cost smartphones with an internet connection. However, these devices aren’t suitable for learning nor is the internet bandwidth large enough to support streaming and other e-learning activities. What’s more, 56 million students — half of whom live in sub-Saharan Africa — have no mobile networks for accessing the internet over the phone.

Get more science news like this...

Join the ZME newsletter for amazing science news, features, and exclusive scoops. More than 40,000 subscribers can't be wrong.

   

“We now know that continued teaching and learning cannot be limited to online means,” UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay said in a statement.

“We must also support other alternatives including the use of community radio and television broadcasts, and creativity in all ways of learning.”

Tags: coronavirusdistance learning
Tibi Puiu

Tibi Puiu

Tibi is a science journalist and co-founder of ZME Science. He writes mainly about emerging tech, physics, climate, and space. In his spare time, Tibi likes to make weird music on his computer and groom felines.

Follow ZME on social media

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
  • Coronavirus
  • News
  • Environment
  • Health
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
  • More

© 2007-2019 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Coronavirus
  • News
  • Environment
    • Climate
    • Animals
    • Renewable Energy
    • Eco tips
    • Environmental Issues
    • Green Living
  • Health
    • Alternative Medicine
    • Anatomy
    • Diseases
    • Genetics
    • Mind & Brain
    • Nutrition
  • Future
  • Space
  • Feature
    • Feature Post
    • Art
    • Great Pics
    • Design
    • Fossil Friday
    • AstroPicture
    • GeoPicture
    • Did you know?
    • Offbeat
  • More
    • About
    • The Team
    • Advertise
    • Contribute
    • Our stance on climate change
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact

© 2007-2019 ZME Science - Not exactly rocket science. All Rights Reserved.