Countries, cities, and communities around the world are taking action to prevent the spread of coronavirus. They have canceled plays, concerts, and sporting events due to the pandemic. Schools have closed, and many colleges have transitioned all of their in-person classes to online instruction. What does this mean for students?
Hello, homeschooling! That’s one positive outcome. Or at least it can be.
Kevin Carey of the New America think tank told The New York Times that coronavirus could lead to “a vast unplanned experiment in mass home-schooling.” This is already happening in some places, even where homeschooling isn’t as popular as it is in the United States.
An article in The Wall Street Journal, titled “Coronavirus Prompts a Whole City to Try Home Schooling,” reported that in Hong Kong many children are completing lessons virtually through online learning platforms or receiving live instruction from teachers through digital platforms like Google Hangouts.
Interest in distance learning options such as online schooling is sure to increase as the coronavirus spreads, since “social distancing” will be necessary to limit exposure by reducing face-to-face contact and preventing infection among people in community settings.
Homeschoolers have an advantage since their educational efforts are not dependent on classroom instruction – but it doesn’t mean that homeschoolers never get together.
As homeschool dad J.D. Tuccille wrote in Reason magazine, “Contrary to accusations from critics, family-based education is not an inherently solitary venture.”
Homeschooling often involves group lessons, collaborative projects, field trips, athletics, and more – so homeschoolers also might have to make some changes in terms of reducing or eliminating outings and activities.
According to The Cherokee Tribune, one Georgia resident who tested positive for coronavirus is a 15-year-old enrolled at the Living Science Homeschool Study Center. This Christian homeschool co-op and STEM learning center (which also offers dual enrollment through Truett McConnell University) was temporarily closed due to the student’s diagnosis, and anyone who may have interacted with him were asked to self-quarantine.
Some people think that all of the hype about coronavirus may be causing more panic than it should; but even so, no one wants to get sick and it never hurts to be prepared.
Jasmine Directory made an infographic that highlights everything we need to know about the coronavirus. It covers what coronaviruses are, their structure, the origin of the outbreak, transmission routes, how it spreads, symptoms, prevention, travel advice, risk factors, and the mortality rate for different ages.
Here is the infographic:
Coronavirus infographic credit: JasmineDirectory.com