COVID-19 has shed light on inequalities within our education systems, an expert has told Qatar Foundation’s virtual Teaching and Learning Forum, adding that collaboration within, between, and beyond schools can help make change happen. 

“But we shouldn't assume that collaboration is an easy answer,” said Professor Mel Ainscow, Emeritus Professor of Education at the University of Manchester, during the keynote speech at the event, organized by the Education Development Institute (EDI), part of Qatar Foundation’s Pre-University Education. 

“The challenges we meet, we try to educate every child effectively, are complex and collaboration can help us to think in new ways, to share ideas, to invent new possibilities. But collaboration in itself is time-consuming.”

Equity, according to Professor Ainscow, means that every child matters equally, but treating everybody as being of equal importance doesn’t necessarily translate into success, as he raised the question of how every child can be given the opportunity to participate and learn effectively.

Moreover, to bring about change, one must look within schools where both teachers and support staff are expected to learn together. He spoke of the importance of the relationship between schools as there is a lot to be learned together.

Forum participants attended a series of virtual discussions and breakout sessions, including Building Inclusive and Accessible Learning Communities, Personalizing Teaching and Learning, and Marketing for Schools.

During the Glocalizing the Curriculum session, Malcolm Nicolson, director of educational consultancy Erimus Education, said glocalization is “a fairly recent innovation within education - it’s a great avenue for seeing how we can relate learning to real-life experiences.

“If we can use glocalization to provide authenticity and relevance, then that relates directly to motivation, engagement, and student’s achievement, because the more engaged and motivated the student, the more they will learn. Happy students learn, anxious students do not.

According to Malcolm Nicolson, viewing global issue in a local lens will provide a global context for local gain of knowledge and use of skills.

Under the theme of Education for Resilience, the event brought together over 1,600 participants to look at how learning can be made sustainable post-COVID-19.

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