Thursday, August 12, 2021

Q and A with the experts: COVID learning setback

The University of Waterloo has a number of experts available to speak about issues relating to COVID-19.

Parents, students and decision-makers are dealing with more challenges as we move closer to another pandemic school year. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) characterized COVID-19 school closures as the “greatest disruption in educational opportunity worldwide in a generation,” affecting 90 per cent of the world’s student population. Sociology professor Janice Aurini, an expert in schooling and education inequality, explains the challenges and recommends strategies to mitigate the educational impacts of the pandemic. 

As students and teachers move back to in-person teaching after five months away from classrooms, what do we know from previous research into school disruptions?

The unprecedented nature of COVID-19 school closures defies a straightforward comparison. However, there are lessons from education research that we can draw on. Numerous studies demonstrate that ‘non-school time’ can be a key generator of achievement gaps. For example, the years leading up to kindergarten prime children for content-based learning and positive interactions with peers and teachers (also referred to as ‘school readiness’). Gaps in school readiness tend to persist as children progress through school and predict various longer-term inequalities, such as education and employment). Research on school absenteeism and summer setback also point to the potency of non-school time and environments.

How does online learning factor into educational setbacks during the pandemic?

Research is continuing to trickle in, but the initial results are not good. At this point, I am unaware of Canadian data that would allow us to directly measure learning online and compare it to in-class learning or pre-pandemic learning more generally. To compensate for these data shortfalls, researchers have had to find creative ways to make reasonable estimates. My colleague and I extrapolated from our summer learning research to estimate likely shortfalls in literacy and numeracy during COVID-19 school closures. We predict learning shortfalls that range from 0 to 3.5 months among typically-performing students and up to one full year among lower-performing students.

Can we learn anything from other countries’ research?

Research from other countries has been able to answer questions about remote learning more directly. They have found that students made little to no learning progress with online schooling. These data are troubling, and education and health leaders will have to balance the potential risks of COVID-19 with emerging research about the negative impacts of school closures and remote learning on not just learning but also children’s wellbeing. Parents whose children have fallen behind are more likely to express concern about their children’s mental health. We shouldn’t be surprised by their observations. While some try to characterize the promotion of academic achievement as in tension with or opposed to children’s wellbeing, there is a reciprocal relationship between the two. 

What can we do to make up for learning shortfalls and prepare for the upcoming school year? 

A wide range of targeted strategies will be needed to help children catch up. Summer programs are one strategy. Pre-pandemic, my colleague and I evaluated free literacy and numeracy summer camps offered by the Ontario Ministry of Education. These programs not only slowed or stopped summer setbacks, but in some cases, closed skill gaps. And they are very popular with families and students. To be clear, these camps are not the same as summer school. School boards did an excellent job fostering a fun camp-like atmosphere that included recreation and field trips as well as opportunities for parents to do activities with their children. Building on this success and expanding these camps strikes me as a viable way to offer a targeted intervention. These high-quality free summer programs support existing efforts already in the works, such as targeted reading programs, and generate other benefits for families and students. 

What else are researchers recommending?

Other researchers also suggest that schools will need to embrace extra programs aimed at re-engaging students, such as free summer programs, high-dosage tutoring and “vacation academies.”

In terms of future school closures, we are more prepared. Even the fall and winter of 2020-2021 looked very different from the first pandemic spring. School boards have resources and training to quickly ‘pivot’ between remote and in-person options. The focus among educators has shifted to questions about improving online teaching and learning, student engagement, and assessment methods. 

Janice Aurini is an associate professor in Sociology and Legal Studies. Professor Aurini's research examines issues related to education and schooling. These projects intersect with research and theories of organizations, family, inequality, and technology. 

Springing into victory with the Concept $5K winners

This article was originally published on the Concept blog.

Not only does the end of the term mean it’s time to unwind, but it also means that we spring into the Concept $5k Pitch Competition. As always, we were so impressed with the ideas that the student teams brought to the table and immensely proud of the progress they have made from their first submissions to now. 

Despite still being amidst a pandemic and the challenges of working remotely and with limited physical resources, these entrepreneurial students focused on their innovations and continued to develop new ideas. A huge kudos to everyone who applied this semester and pitched at the Semi-Finals or the Finals. Your dedication is highly admirable and stands as a testament to both your character and commitment to creating solutions. 

We would like to extend a massive thank you to everyone on our judging panel for taking the time to come out and help support student entrepreneurship. Their questions and feedback were invaluable for the teams and will enable them to look deeper into their ideas and better refine them for future success. Thank you to Alysaa Co, Megan Boyd, and Elliot Fung for providing their expertise and helping to split hairs between Finalists and Winners. Although each team made their decision difficult, a few pitches and ideas stood out above the rest. 

The winners for the Spring 2021 Concept $5k grant are:

MedAtlas

MedAtlas aims to simplify access to specialist healthcare in Africa using telemedicine solutions. 

Team:
Margaret Mutumba
Bonita Nanziri

Stay in Touch with MedAtlas:
Website
LinkedIn

HouseAI

House AI is a customized data analytics solution for hospitals and healthcare institutions that saves lives, costs, and improves workflows. 

Team:
Matthew Jiao 
Adam Lam 
Amrit Bhogal

Stay in Touch with HouseAI:
Website

Maesos

Maesos is developing an IoT microclimate monitoring network using smart weather sensors and novel plant health sensors to optimize agricultural management, maximize yield and combat damage caused by weather, pests, diseases and sprays. 

Team:
Brandon Chan
Jack Paduchowski 
Kurtis Eisler 

Stay in Touch with Maesos:
Website
LinkedIn

SAFI

SAFI is a portable, cost effective, and easy to use pasteurization kit made for Kenyan herders to clean their milk and prevent the spread of deadly illnesses. 

Team:
Miraal Kabir
Daria Margarit
Martin Turuta
Alex Shehdula

Stay in Touch with SAFI:
Website
LinkedIn

But wait...

With a goal of increasing health innovation, this semester we had an additional $5k allocated to a team who had a health focused idea. For the first time in Concept history, one team was awarded a total of $10k for their idea.

Read the rest of the article on the Concept blog.

Remembering Professor Don Arnold

This article was originally featured on the Faculty of Health website.

Former University of Waterloo Recreation Professor Don Arnold passed away on June 27 in North Vancouver, British Columbia.

In 1954 Arnold began his undergraduate degree at University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver where he was invited to try out for the UBC-VRC rowing team in 1955. With Arnold in the stroke seat, his crew of four was selected for the 1956 Canadian Olympic trials, which they won by several boat lengths and set a world record. Later that year they represented Canada at the Olympic games in Melbourne, claiming the first ever Olympic gold medal for Canada in rowing. In 1960, he stroked the UBC-VCR Eight crew to Olympic silver in Rome – Canada’s only medal of the Games.

After the 1960 Olympics, Arnold retired from rowing to focus on family and his education, completing his bachelor’s degree at UBC in 1962, a Master of Science in 1964 at San Francisco UCLA, and his doctorate in Recreation and Park Administration at Indiana University in 1970. He accepted a position as Assistant Professor at the University of Waterloo in 1970 in the fledgling department of recreation and leisure studies. He and his family returned to Vancouver in 1976 where he took a teaching position at UBC, and later co-founded and directed Rowing BC.

Arnold’s accomplishments were also featured in a legacy article in The Globe and Mail.