Coronavirus lockdown, lack of broadband could lead to 'education breakdown'

Larissa Rosa, an English-as-a-second-language teacher at Public School 7 Samuel Stern in the East Harlem neighborhood of New York, has for the last five weeks taught remote classes from her apartment in Manhattan. But she's increasingly worried that too many of her students are being left behind as they're unable to connect to the online sessions.

The coronavirus pandemic has forced a lockdown of millions of people around the world, and New York, where schools have been shut down since March 16, has been one of the major epicenters of COVID-19 cases, with more than 145,000 confirmed cases as of Thursday afternoon. As a result, teachers and students have resorted to distance learning with online classes. 

But Rosa said at least 45 of the roughly 400 students at her school haven't logged on once. There are many reasons why students may not be showing up, such as parents working or families that are dealing with the virus, but one of the biggest issues she hears from families is a lack of broadband access. 

"These are already students who were not at grade level," Rosa said. "I just worry that they're falling further behind. And it doesn't look like anyone is trying to fix this."

Since March, when governors across the country began declaring public health emergencies and issuing shelter-in-place orders, 47 states and the District of Columbia have closed schools due to the coronavirus, according to Education Week. All told, at least 124,000 US public and private schools across the country have closed their doors, affecting 55 million students. And as many as 38.6 million students won't be going back to school until at least the fall.

Districts have scrambled to replace their in-person instruction with some form of online learning. Some schools are offering live video streams, while others post assignments online and expect students to access content and assignments. 

But as the weeks drag on, it's become clear that not all students have access to broadband, exacerbating an existing equity problem in American education. The result is that millions of students throughout the country aren't getting the same educational opportunity as their peers. 

https://www.cnet.com/