UN agencies helping Lebanon to secure distance learning education

25 / 04 / 2020

By Marwa Nassar - -

The United Nations agencies are assisting Lebanon to maintain the educational process under the coronavirus crisis through preparing and deploying inclusive distance learning solutions, utilizing hi-tech, low-tech and no-tech approaches.

Distance learning support includes activities for the production of pre-primary and basic education lessons, as well as well-being materials, the Gender-Based Violence approach and health awareness for students and parents.

The UN urged collective action to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on children and youth and is providing support to the Lebanese Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE) and the Ministry of Agriculture, among other partners in Lebanon, by developing alternative solutions to school closure to ensure that learning never stops.

The UN is also providing assistance for developing communication learning materials and special TV episodes, targeting teachers and parents, to raise their awareness on addressing the stress and psychosocial needs of children during remote learning.

The school closures have also affected youth enrolled in vocational and technical education and training. The UN in Lebanon, with its partners, is supporting the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) in upgrading the agriculture education system in Lebanon, which offers Lebanese and displaced Syrian youth the opportunity of acquiring necessary technical skills to access improved career opportunities in agriculture and agribusiness in Lebanon or Syria upon their return.

The assistance provided by the UN and its partners also includes distance online learning for students enrolled in the Technical Baccalaureate programs (BTA) at the seven agricultural technical schools in Lebanon. Teaching Programs are posted on the Ministry’s website for students’ access at this link and taken further with schoolteachers through virtual education.

The UN support to school children includes the extension of distance learning to the second shift and non-formal education programs, aiming at reaching the most vulnerable communities, including the refugee communities. UN teams in the Bekaa developed remote learning solutions and created a virtual learning community (WhatsApp, Skype) contributing to guarantee children’s continued access to education.

A Learning Readiness Rapid Assessment has been completed with the UN support and the participation of over 10,000 Syrian families with children enrolled in suspended non-formal and formal education programs. This assessment provides critical information to determine the ability of these families to access and manage distance learning opportunities. With this information, education providers will be able to tailor content and implementation modalities given the current lockdown.

The UN has also developed a series of regional webinars to strengthen teachers’ capacities in distance/online teaching and build their skills to use ICTs in education.

Several awareness raising information materials, including flyers and infographics have been prepared targeting teachers and parents.

Since the outbreak of the pandemic, the UN has been monitoring the impact of the crisis on the sector and providing MEHE with technical expertise, sharing of information and good practices. Monitoring support is also focused on the progress of remote learning, identifying gaps and providing technical support.

With a chief aim to keep children and their families safe and informed about how to protect themselves, the UN engaged in a series of preventative actions that included the development of Cleaning and Disinfection Protocol for schools, the provision of hygiene and medical kits to schools and health clinics. As schools are expected to re-open at one point, the UN is providing advice and recommendations for education planners and decision makers who are anticipating the reopening of schools after lockdown measures are lifted.