“The biggest challenge is to reach everyone, without any child being left behind.”

Alibert Rodríguez has been a teacher for over 22 years. She works as a primary education coordinator at a school on the outskirts of Caracas. Her role involves coordinating 20 teachers who look after over 480 children and adolescents aged 5–12 years. 

Since the start of distance learning, due to the temporary closure of schools as a COVID-19 prevention measure in March, she and other teachers have had to adapt the way they teach and monitor pupils. The classrooms remain empty at the school, whose morning, afternoon, and evening sessions are attended by hundreds of children, adolescents, and young people. However, the staff members who bring the school alive in normal times are as committed as ever to delivering an education to the children.

 “Distance education at primary level is a challenge in itself. This method has never been used for such young children. Besides, the biggest challenge is reaching everyone, to reach all families, without any child being left behind because of communication failures or a lack of equipment”, explains Alibert, who has taken part in UNICEF training on child protection and emergency education strategies at her school. In Miranda state alone, where Alibert works, over 572 teachers have received this type of training, with many more trained nationwide. 

“There is no end to the day-to-day remote work in these circumstances. Now we offer holistic support, not only to children but to parents too, as they also need the training to support their children in their learning. As teachers, we design a weekly workbook with activities and objectives and make adjustments as we see how the family is doing. It is a demanding process of checking and monitoring. Supporting the families is a continuous and constant job”, she adds.  

Alibert has continued going into school and keeping in contact with the teaching staff she coordinates and the families. She says that one of the main challenges she faced was having the resources to stay in contact with, including the internet. She recently received a smartphone from UNICEF, which enables her to store her students’ work and be more responsive, communicating fluidly and constantly with teachers and families. By the end of July, 900 teachers in Miranda state had received mobile phones with internet access as part of this initiative.  

“The support of UNICEF has enabled us to reach each child at home and give them the materials they need to learn. The teachers have also received training. All of this has a positive impact on the children, enabling them to stay in school and allowing us to look after them, without any child being left behind”, she remarks. 

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the UNICEF response has focused on enabling children and adolescents to continue their learning at home, through technical and operational support with partners and counterparts. Its technical contribution allowed over 127,000 children to be supported through distance education by the end of July 2020. School supplies have also been provided to 206,000 children.  

In addition, the school feeding programme supported by UNICEF to encourage children to stay in school was adapted to the COVID-19 context by preparing hot meals and delivering them to childrens’ homes, with non-perishable food provided in situations in which preparing hot meals proved unfeasible. The programme has benefited over 25,000 children. 

UNICEF will continue to support the provision of education kits and the continuation of the school feeding programme in the run-up to the next school year. Technical assistance is also key to supporting teachers and students with resources for learning during the pandemic.