As many parents, teachers and students had feared, the massive digital divide in Jamaica has put a hamper on a smooth reopening of schools on the island.
Almost half a million students were unable to logon to the online learning system due to the lack of computers or laptops at home as the school year began yesterday.
Speaking on Sunday during a two-school tour in St Ann, the island’s Minister of Education, Fayval Williams said that while more than 200,000 students had already logged on to the Learning Mangement System (LMS), there are still fears of a large percentage of students being left behind.
“We recognise there is another 400,000 or so students across the education sector that may be without a device, and so the Government has put in place a programme to ensure that our students across the education sector get a laptop or a tablet,” Williams said.
The Jamaican government had committed to purchasing 40,000 tablets for students part of the Programme of Advancement through Health and Education (PATH), a state welfare programme. Additional JMD $20,000 vouchers were also provided to 36,000 students not on PATH to help them purchase tablets or laptops. 25,000 devices have also been distributed to teachers so far.
But for hundreds of thousands of students who have not received assistance and those who have no means of purchasing the technology needed for classes, they could be further marginalised; especially children living in poor communities or remote, hilly areas where internet connectivity is not reliable.
In Kingston and St. Andrew, a number of schools in some of the toughest communities reported that fewer than 50 per cent of their students had registered for online lessons.
The government had previously announced that classes will also be aired on TV and printed materials delivered at drop-off points to further assist students. But for integral sessions that will be taught or explained during online classes, students will still be at a disadvantage.
Other issues plaguing the reopening of schools are the lack of reliable internet connection, no assistance for parents who have to work while children are at home, noisy backgrounds interrupting classes and more.
The Ministry of Education has said that Jamaica will not have face-to-face classes for the foreseeable future due to the second wave of COVID-19, which has not yet reached its peak on the island.
