WASHINGTON, United States (CMC) — Two new reports have found that school closures due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic risk pushing an additional 72 million primary school aged children, including those in the Caribbean, into “learning poverty”, meaning that they are unable to read and understand a simple text by age 10.

The reports by the World Bank outline a new vision for learning and the investments and policies, including on education technology that countries can implement today to realise this vision.

The Washington-based financial institution said that the COVID-19 pandemic is amplifying the global learning crisis that already existed.

The bank said the pandemic could increase the percentage of primary school-age children in low- and middle-income countries, such as those in the Caribbean, living in learning poverty to 63 per cent from 53 per cent, and it puts this generation of students at risk of losing about US$10 trillion in future life-time earnings, an amount equivalent to almost 10 per cent of global gross domestic product (GDP).

The report, “Realising the Future of Learning: From Learning Poverty to Learning for Everyone, Everywhere,” lays out a vision for the future of learning that can guide countries today in their investments and policy reforms, “so that they can build more equitable, effective and resilient education systems, and ensure that all children learn with joy, rigour and purpose in school and beyond the school walls.”

The accompanying report, “Reimagining Human Connections: Technology & Innovation at the World Bank,” presents the World Bank’s new approach to guide investments in education technology, “so that technology can truly serve as a tool to make education systems more resilient to catastrophic shocks like COVID-19 and help in reimagining the way education is delivered.”

World Bank Vice President for Human Development, Mamta Murthi, in launching the reports, said “without urgent action, this generation of students may never achieve their full capabilities and earnings potential, and countries will lose essential human capital to sustain long-term economic growth,.

“Having over half of children worldwide in learning poverty is unacceptable, and so we cannot continue with business as usual in education delivery. Through visionary and bold action, policymakers and stakeholders around the globe can turn this crisis into a boon to transform education systems so that all children can truly achieve learning with joy, rigour and purpose, everywhere,” she added.

The World Bank said the COVID-19 pandemic has brought two massive shocks.

It said school closures have left most students on the planet out of school — 1.6 billion students at the peak in April 2020, and still almost 700 million students today.

The World Bank said the negative impact of the unprecedented global economic contraction on family incomes has increased the risk of school dropouts.

“Marginalised groups are likely to fall further behind. Girls are facing increased risk of adolescent pregnancy and early marriage during the pandemic. And children with disabilities, ethnic minorities, refugees, and displaced populations are less likely to access suitable remote learning materials and to return to school post-crisis.”

In responding to the pandemic, the World Bank said education systems have been forced to rapidly implement innovations in remote learning at scale.

To reach as many children and youth as possible, the bank said the systems they have used multi-modal remote learning approaches that combine online resources with radio, TV, mobile, as well as printed materials for the most vulnerable.

“However, the huge digital divides – from connectivity to digital skills – and inequalities in the quality of parental support and home learning environments is amplifying learning inequality,” the World Bank said.

“Effective action today to mitigate large and mounting learning losses, recover, and rebuild stronger is needed more urgently than ever to accelerate the acquisition of foundational skills and, increasingly, 21st-century skills for every child,” said Jaime Saavedra, World Bank Global Director for Education.

“There is a window of opportunity to build on the lessons of the pandemic and to build back a system that is equitable, where all schools and homes have the conditions and support for learning; that is effective, where teachers and schools are equipped to support each student at the level she needs; and that is resilient, with education services that are well-managed and ensure continuity in the learning process between the school and the home and community.”

The World Bank recommended that Caribbean and other countries chart their own path with “a political commitment to carry out investments and reforms” in five pillars that ensure that learners are prepared and motivated to learn, “with a stronger emphasis on whole-child development and support to learning continuity beyond the school, as well as better preparation through quality preschool, early stimulation and nutrition”.

Overall, the World Bank, one of the largest sources of funding for the Caribbean, said it is taking “broad, fast action to help developing countries strengthen their pandemic response.”