Pandemic 2020 and Education: Responding from Kiribati

Abstract

Growth of unprecedented innovation in Education Technology for several decades faced a major challenge with the pandemic of 2020, characterised by disruption and opportunity. While educational services in high-income economies have benefitted from digital learning solutions during the disruption, most low- and middle-income economies have struggled to provide undisrupted access to learning during the pandemic lockdown. Framed by the global context of the pandemic, this paper identifies a global oversupply of advice from academic and industry experts about best practices during such circumstances. In contrast, the capacity of an education system from a low-income economy such as Kiribati, a small island country in the Pacific Ocean, is profiled. Key questions are identified for conducting qualitative research to gather further data for the case-study so that it might inform a related research agenda focused on developing technology-based solutions for out-of-school children in underprivileged contexts.