The crisis caused by the COVID-19 virus global pandemic has brought about a radical change in various aspects, from hygienic customs to the way communication. Part of the change has had a crucial impact on the educational system and is considered the most affected areas in this country due to the social and economic gap that Peruvians have been victims of for years.
Although it is true that virtual classes are not new in Peruvian territory and there are even some net virtual distance vocational training institutions that have operated for several years, it is also true that poverty rates in Peru make it the ninth most poor from Latin America.
According to a study carried out in 2019 by the INEI, a little more 20% of the Peruvian population lives in poverty and an approximately 13% in extreme poverty, that is, more than 6.4 million families do not even have the services basic water, electricity, and drainage. These figures make us think about the following: How are these families educating their children at home without an electronic device that needs the Internet?
Peruvian President Martín Vizcarra decreed a national quarantine on March 15th, two weeks after the start of the school year. For this reason, millions of students and teachers at all levels have had to use various technological tools, but what about the student population living in poverty and extreme poverty? Faced with this situation, the Ministry of Education had no better idea than to launch the «I learn at home» program in collaboration with Radio Nacional and RTV Peru; and other Peruvian media, as well as digital channels.
But, in spite of this respectable initiative, the question remains in the air: how will the education of the minority class be resolved, of those who subsist with a basket below basic cost, who live in rural areas so far away from where it doesn’t reach the signal from the analog channels much less from the Internet?
A well-known Peruvian media outlet obtained some statements from residents who live in the poorest areas of the Lima commune, they claimed that many of their children would miss the school year and that for the moment the only education they are receiving comes from the old books of the last year.
he private educational system is also suffering the blows of the pandemic, according to a report by Adecopa (The Private Schools Association) for the newspaper Gestión in mid-April, six thousand educational institutions approximately are at risk of closing and this is added the parents’ protest for the reduction of pensions.
Finally, it should be emphasized that educational quality in Peru has been carrying errors for many years, even with the traditional education system and at this time when the Peruvian tries to embrace hope in the face of the crisis, all that remains is to wait for the results of this stormy year for the whole world.