Rethinking education: An inclusive response to COVID-19

Khmer Times’ Taing Rinith shares his thoughts on how the Cambodian youth can receive equal and inclusive access to proper education amid the onslaught of the coronavirus pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has infected approximately 5.4 million people worldwide, killing over 345,000 people, with the promise of causing the global per capita income to fall by four percent this year. Despite the harrowing figures, the pandemic, aside from being a public health and economic calamity, is also an education crisis.

With countries across the globe closing academic institutes in a bid to contain the spread of COVID-19 and protect young people, the United Nations Development Programme has estimated that 60 percent of children are effectively out of school, a global level not seen since the 1980s.

As such, governments and institutions worldwide scrambled to fast-track the enforcement of distance learning to ensure the continuity of education for young people.

In Cambodia, the government has been expending great effort to promote e-Learning, including broadcasting distance-learning programmes on the National Television of Kampuchea and other cable networks. Such initiatives are expected to continue as the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports last week announced it will consider the reopening of schools in November, given that the COVID-19 situation is abated by that time.

Despite the rationale, the switch to e-Learning has seemingly brought with it an unwanted effect: widening the educational gaps that were already present even before the pandemic struck.

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50726828/rethinking-education-an-inclusive-response-to-covid-19/

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Covid-19: Cambodia puts off reopening schools

PHNOM PENH: Cambodia has decided to extend its schools' closure until the next academic year that starts in November.

Prime Minister Hun Sen said he had agreed to this following a request by the Education Ministry to ensure teachers and students were safe from Covid-19.

He stressed that students and teachers were in a vulnerable group, which could easily be affected by the virus.

He also urged the public to remain cautious about the coronavirus despite no new cases reported for 32 days in a row.

Hun Sen said a second wave of Covid-19 infections was still a concern for the nation.

According to the Phnom Penh Post, Education Minister Hang Chuon Naron had requested a delay of school reopening across the country until November, when the new academic year begins.

He said despite the relatively low number of infections in Cambodia, Covid-19 was still spreading all over the world.

In Southeast Asia alone, he said, nearly 60,000 had contracted the disease and some 2,000 had lost their lives.

Chuon Naron said Cambodia was not alone in implementing precautionary measures, including temporary school closures.

He added that the country was not ready to follow other countries that have reopened schools under certain conditions.

The Health Ministry recently said Cambodia could not rule out a second wave of infections and warned the public to remain vigilant.

Chuon Naron said the delay in reopening school was due to both political and technical aspects. Technically, he said the number of students in a classroom ranged from 50 to 60 — far beyond the World Health Organisation's guideline which recommended a maximum of 20 per class.

He cautioned that reopening schools too soon would put students at risk and could turn them into sources of infections.

Source: https://www.nst.com.my/world/region/2020/05/593454/covid-19-cambodia-puts-reopening-schools

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Rights Group Criticizes Cambodia’s ‘Failed War on Drugs’

PHNOM PENH - Rights group Amnesty International released a damning report Wednesday documenting various human rights abuses committed along the law enforcement chain related to Cambodia’s “war on drugs” that has resulted in the arrests of tens of thousands of Cambodians.

The report, titled “Substance Abuse – The Human Cost of Cambodia’s Anti-Drug Campaign,” was released on Wednesday and documents issues plaguing Cambodian law enforcement, judiciary and drug rehabilitation programs, resulting in frequent rights abuses, while also highlighting the pitfalls of severe criminalization of drug use.

The international rights group interviewed 51 people, 34 who were or previously had used drugs. It also reviewed official documents from government institutions and ministries while drafting the report. The report is limited to the harmful effects and rights violations linked to the government’s “war on drugs” started in 2017.

“Over three years since its launch, the country’s campaign against drugs has not only failed in its primary mission of reducing drug use and drug-related harms, it has led to serious and systematic human rights violations,” the report reads.

The main issues highlighted in the report were the ad-hoc mechanisms used by law enforcement in arresting alleged offenders, the consequent overcrowding in prisons, accusations of torture and abuse at drug rehabilitation centers and endemic corruption which has resulted in the incarceration of innocent people.

Source: https://www.voacambodia.com/a/rights-group-criticizes-cambodia-s-failed-war-on-drugs-/5417676.html

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KeeDu, a new educational app for children

While schools are still closed and distance learning become commonplace, children are spending more time indoors with gadgets than they ever did before.

Taking away their iPads, Samsung tablets and other electronic devices results in disappointment or the throwing of temper tantrums by some children.

To fill the gap for healthier screen time, a team of young entrepreneurs has come up with an idea to develop a fun and educational tech-based solution called KeeDu.

KeeDu is a less serious and entertaining way of learning. It can be considered as an extra-curricular activity for self-learning at home and complements the existing online national education curriculum.

The solution aims to get hundreds of pupils educated at home and provide jobs to educators who are losing their jobs temporarily.

The eight people behind KeeDu are Moung Vandy, a digital designer and creative writer; Ith Serey Vaddhanak, a digital marketing specialist and community association officer; Ich Sokheng, an assistant developer, Has Chanleakhena, a content writer; Sa Sophanich, a university student in Economics and Management; Udam Visal, majoring in software engineering; Seng Uy, a computer science student; and Chhun Porchou, a software engineering student.

Siurce: https://www.phnompenhpost.com/lifestyle-creativity-innovation/keedu-new-educational-app-children

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Teachers, Students Find Online Education Can be Tough

Most American schools are closed until the start of the next school year in the fall in a bid to contain the coronavirus. But many teachers and students are pushing ahead with studies online - though this method has posed some unexpected difficulties for students, teachers and parents. For VOA, Alexey Gorbachev has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. VOA Khmer's Pichchinda Sou narrates.

Source: https://www.voacambodia.com/a/teachers-students-find-online-education-can-be-tough/5416576.html

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Cambodia sports ban still in force

More than a month after it was first imposed, the ban on all sports activities in Cambodia remains in force.

The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport (MoEYS), the government agency in-charge of sports in Cambodia, first imposed the ban on April 7 as a means to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

The ban covered all sports activities and gatherings in both public and private spaces.

Prior to the blanket ban, the MoEYS ordered the temporary closures of gyms and sports clubs in response to the escalating health crisis at the time.

While the ban was in place, sports federations were limited to having their players practise online or remotely. While useful, this is not as effective as field training, according to many experts.

Since then, Cambodia has recorded very few cases of coronavirus. So far, the Kingdom has 122 cases of coronavirus infection, with the number remaining constant in the last two weeks.

Because of that, life is slowly getting back to normal, with many restaurants, hotels, retail shops and other businesses once again opening their doors to customers.

This has led to some sectors clamouring for the return of sports activities, though on a limited basis, with preventive measures in place. The coronavirus pandemic and the resulting ban has greatly affected popular sports events like the Metfone Cambodian League (MCL), Hun Sen Cup and KMH Cup. Before their temporary suspension, these events regularly drew thousands of fans.

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50722210/cambodia-sports-ban-still-in-force/

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In Cambodia, learning during COVID-19

Cambodia’s first confirmed case of Covid-19 occurred in late January. With a second case in early March in Siem Reap province, home of the renowned temples of Angkor Wat, the Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sport (MoEYS), in an abundance of caution, closed the schools until further notice.

Education in Cambodia ground to a halt, or so one might have imagined, but the MoEYS quickly found creative ways to promote learning outside the traditional school setting. The ministry worked with private companies to launch a new e-learning initiative. Lessons for students in grades one through 12 were prerecorded and offered online through the ministry’s Facebook page, YouTube channel, e-learning website and TV.

With schools closed, the responsibility for teaching has now shifted from teachers to families. While the online lessons from the MoEYS are vital to keep kids on track during this enforced hiatus, they are not enough: nurturing children’s creativity, curiosity, and critical thinking is just as important as academic lesson plans. The new routines are stressful for both children and parents, but sheltering at home can also be an ideal time to help kids develop positive learning habits.

The MoEYS’s e-learning initiative came just a few days after the national #ReadEveryDay campaign, in which The Asia Foundation’s Let’s Read project joined forces with the MoEYS, telecom provider Smart Axiata and 11 nongovernmental organisations to promote a weeklong read-aloud event. #ReadEveryDay released 10 videos with tips for reading aloud to encourage parents, caregivers, teachers, and librarians to spend quality time reading with children and students. The campaign, which had hoped for 100,000 participants, succeeded far beyond expectations, reaching more than 220,000 children throughout Cambodia,

Let’s Read is now supporting MoEYS’s e-learning initiatives during the pandemic with the #LetsReadAtHome campaign, which provides essential learning materials in Khmer, English and nearly 30 other languages. The Let’s Read digital library offers books that are relevant to the lives of young Cambodians and that challenge readers to use their imaginations to explore new places and ideas. It will be providing free resources to children, teachers, caregivers and family members who need children’s storybooks to read aloud.

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com/50720615/in-cambodia-learning-during-covid-19/

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Closed border prevents Cambodia children from attending schools in Vietnam

More than 1,300 Vietnamese children living in Cambodia but studying in schools in Vietnam cannot attend classes now since borders are closed.

Vietnam closed its borders in late March.

The Department of Education and Training in An Giang Province said on Tuesday its An Phu District, which shares a border with Cambodia, has 1,347 students from the neighboring country studying in grades in primary and high schools.

Every day they would cross the border to attend class and return home afterward.

An Giang authorities recently agreed to allow in 18 12th grade students, quarantine them for 14 days and then permit them to attend school. The parents of seven of the students have agreed to this.

The remaining 1,329 students have to wait until the border is reopened.

The department said it would instruct schools to organize extra classes for the students to make up for the time they are in quarantine.

Nguyen Thi Diem Tuyet, principal of A Khanh An primary school in An Phu, said of her school’s 1,049 students, around 390 live in Cambodia.

"The school has told the students in Cambodia to follow classes on the An Giang television channel. Teachers will also send curriculum materials to students via the Internet."

With the government easing social distancing restrictions late last month many students returned to school on Monday for the first time since the Lunar New Year in late January as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak.

Many schools had resorted to online lessons during the break.

Source: https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/closed-border-prevents-cambodia-children-from-attending-schools-in-vietnam-4094924.html

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