“When schools shut: Gendered impacts of COVID-19 school closures” – A Global study by UNESCO

“When schools shut: Gendered impacts of COVID-19 school closures” – A Global study by UNESCO

Part of: Prelims and GS-II – Education 

Context A new study by UNESCO, titled “When schools shut: Gendered impacts of COVID-19 school closures” was recently released.

Key findings of the report 

• Threat to gender equality: Educational disruption due to prolonged closure of schools across the globe will have alarming effects on learning loss and also poses threat to gender equality.
• Different impact: Girls and boys, young women and men were affected differently by school closures, depending on the context.
• At the peak of the pandemic, 1.6 billion students in 190 countries were affected by school closures. 
• They lost access to education, but also to the myriad benefits of attending school, at an unparalleled scale.
• Gender norms and expectations can affect the ability to participate in and benefit from remote learning.
  • In poorer contexts, girls’ time to learn was constrained by increased household chores. 
  • Boys’ participation in learning was limited by income-generating activities. 
  • Girls faced difficulties in engaging in digital remote learning modalities due to limited access to Internet-enabled devices, a lack of digital skills and cultural norms restricting their use of technological devices.