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EDUCAT ION IN CAMBR I DGE
Lessons Learned in Lockdown H OW C H A N G E S T O E D U C A T I O N P O S E C H A L L E N G E S T O C H I L D R E N A N D P A R E N T S A S O U R A R E A G E T S T O G R I P S W I T H L E A R N I N G I N A P A N D E M I C
W
hile the pandemic has had an impact on every aspect of life in our area, the effect on education
has been particularly stark. During lockdown, schools and colleges emptied, leaving thousands of pupils who had been preparing for vital exams in limbo. Assessments, from GCSEs and A-levels to the final stages of degrees, were either abandoned altogether or re-imagined so that they could be taken from home. Results days and celebrations – including graduation ceremonies, complete with homemade mortar boards – still took place, albeit online. Amid the uncertainty and anxiety, people found new ways of doing things, with key workers undertaking acts of everyday heroism – as they always had done – but now, at least, with widespread public acknowledgment for their bravery. Schools, meanwhile, ensured that children were able to continue attending lessons while their parents kept the country functioning. Here in Cambridgeshire, as elsewhere, economic uncertainty has wreaked havoc
challenge of swapping their daily commute for a new life altogether. Each day, they combined working from home with taking on responsibility for their children’s education. This new development only added to worries about money and job security, as well as constant concerns about how
with people’s lives. According to the Centre for Cities, up to 40% of workers in our area have jobs that can be done at home. Though no consolation to those losing their jobs, this is far higher than other areas across the country. But during lockdown, it meant that working parents faced the additional
AUTUMN/WINTER 2020
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