The Child Welfare League Foundation (CWLF) has warned of increased educational inequality in Taiwan due to COVID-19 with almost 70 percent of rural schoolgoers reporting that they did not own a device appropriate for online classes.
Inadequate access to technology was just one of several educational disadvantages faced by young people in rural areas uncovered by a survey recently released by the foundation.
Pai Li-fang (???), chief executive officer of the CWLF, said that pandemic-induced remote learning had further highlighted educational inequality between urban and rural areas in Taiwan.
After an outbreak of domestically transmitted COVID-19 cases in mid-May 2021 forced many schools online, about 66.7 percent of those polled did not own a computer or tablet and lacked any appropriate device to go online, while around 60 percent of the same cohort had to borrow a device from school or share with others.
Meanwhile, about 20 percent of those polled in rural areas had to use smartphones for online learning as they had no computers or tablets.
The poll also found those in rural areas had reported they encountered more technological hurdles with only 52.2 percent of the families in the rural area having Internet connectivity at home.
In addition, more than 60 percent said they did not have an independent and quiet space for attending online classes, while about 46.6 percent said the spaces they used for remote learning did not have sufficient light.
More than 20 percent of those polled said they were alone without their parents at their side or were accompanied only by their siblings when school was suspended due to the pandemic.
The poll also found only about 42 percent of them said their parents were with them when they did their homework, while only 47.6 percent had their parents with them when they faced problems arising from online learning.
More than 20 percent of them said they had worries that they would fall behind in school due to the way COVID-19 changed learning.
Pei said the survey showed how remote learning had exacerbated the rural-urban divide in education, adding that the CWLF would continue to pay close attention to the issue, while also urging the government to narrow the gap by providing adequate equipment to disadvantaged students.
Beyond the tribulations of remote learning, young people in rural areas also faced challenges related to their economic and living situation, Pei said.
According to the survey, about 47.5 percent of those polled could not afford three meals a day as the pandemic had affected their family’s finances.
In addition, 34.1 percent said they did not have enough resources to meet their daily needs.
Meanwhile, 40.4 percent said they lacked materials for preventing the spread of COVID-19 spread with almost 70 percent saying they feared contracting the virus.
According to the foundation, the poll collected a total of 1,035 valid questionnaires from students between the ages of 11 and 12 from almost 400 schools in rural areas around Taiwan.
Under the Protection of Children and Youths Welfare and Rights Act, children are those aged 11 and under, while youths are those aged 12-18.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel