By Melissa Tanya Gomes, CEO and Co-founder of Edvolution Enterprise
28 June 2020
While some Malaysians are exploring TikTok to display their hidden culinary and dance talents, on the other hand, we see in headlines reporting Malaysians queuing up at the pawn shops immediately after the Conditional Movement Control Order was announced; While there is an outpour of pictures of great home-chefs in social media, we also see many families who are unable to put food on the table.
Having the opportunity to work with schools in both rural and urban areas where a majority of students are from the B40 community, I have seen so many families who are severely impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. Here, I realise how School Leaders and District Authorities play an important role to manage this crisis so students are taken care of in terms of their emotions, physical well-being and their learning, all at the same time. This goes beyond monetary assistance as it requires a tremendous amount of time to help School Leaders and District Education Officers to discern and decide carefully so no students are left out; and here is where my work begins.
Leading in a Crisis; Are School Leaders in Malaysia Ready for this Unchartered Territory?
From March to April 2020, my team and I held various discussions with the State and District Authorities as well as School Leaders in the northern region of Malaysia about the challenges they faced due to the pandemic and their responses to those challenges. We also collected 552 responses from a survey administered to Teachers and School Leaders within our programme network to further understand the situation on the ground. The discussions and survey which represented 22 different schools (primary and secondary) from two states in the northern region, both rural and urban areas were centered upon:
- Identifying a school’s level of preparedness to face the crisis;
- Identifying key challenges faced by schools during the Movement Control Order (MCO); and
- Responses and actions taken by School Leaders and Teachers.
The findings found were consistent between all stakeholders (Teachers, School Leaders and District Officers) which showed that majority of schools seem to:
- Be unprepared to manage a crisis during the MCO; and
- Not have a plan for continuity of operations post MCO.
About 84% of Teachers who undertook the survey expressed concerns over students’ health and safety when schools reopen as most schools have limited capacity for classes to practice social distancing. 70% of Teachers are also concerned with students’ ability to learn remotely due to the absence of internet connectivity in their homes and lack of devices to learn (laptops, desktops, smartphones, etc). This is also consistent with a survey conducted by the Malaysian Ministry of Education where it was found that 37% of students do not have any electronic devices to learn, while only 46% of students have a smartphone; the most used device for remote learning.
The results from the survey with Teachers were consistent with our discussions with School Leaders; where most are fearful and anxious because there is an absence of an effective response plan at the school level.
What Can We Do to Prepare School Leaders in this Unprecedented Time?
The COVID-19 crisis is not only a test of the country’s governance, healthcare and security system but it is also a test to the resilience of our front liners in the education system; School Leaders, District Education Officers and Teachers.
In this predicament, it only leaves the Ministry of Education with two options of responses:
- School Leaders continue leading schools with the current process coupled with ad-hoc responses to the crisis; or
- Prepare School Leaders to manage the crisis during and beyond the MCO.
From the findings above, we conclude that most School Leaders are doing the former. Furthermore, at present there is no leadership course or programme designed to aid School Leaders and District Education Officers in doing the latter.
Referencing to OECD’s ‘A Framework to Guide an Education Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic of 2020’ and findings from schools, we found that there are four fundamental steps crucial for schools to adopt during the crisis to ensure continuity during and post MCO; Organising a COVID-19 Crisis Response Task Force; Identifying School’s Preparedness to Manage a Crisis; Gathering Information for Decision Making; and Improving the Action Plan.
Four Key Steps to Survive the COVID-19 in Schools
Organising a COVID-19 Crisis Response Task Force
During a crisis, School Leaders must renounce the notion of a top-down approach. As the COVID-19 pandemic is the first of its kind in Malaysia, School Leaders are faced with an unfamiliar and a lack-of-guidance situation. Thus, to promote quick and effective problem solving, School Leaders can establish a temporary team created to plan, execute and monitor solutions to face the crisis.
Identifying School’s Preparedness to Manage a Crisis
Before making decisions amid the uncertainties the crisis bring, School Leaders will also have to assess the situation from various points. This means that School Leaders will have to identify their current level of response, decide where they need to be next and then take relevant actions. Here, we have outlined four key areas for School Leaders to predict what needs are to be addressed next as they encounter the different stages of the crisis.
The School Operations Continuity Framework explores the various possibilities of what might occur in the different stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. It guides School Leaders and District Authorities to predict actions that can be taken in four key areas; Communication; Welfare; Teaching and Learning; and School Operations.
Gathering Information on Action Effectiveness
Identifying the current level of response, decide what needs to be done next and then taking relevant actions rely on two human behaviours; 1) Intellectual; This behavior involves making decisions and implementing ideas based on readily available information; and 2) Intuitional: This behavior involves making decisions not only based on the availability of information School Leaders have in hand but decisions are also made based on intuition. Whether it is intellectual or intuitional, both behaviours require a certain amount of information for School Leaders to make a decision. Therefore, School Leaders and District Authorities should develop a database of information to gather data for decision making and execute relevant responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Improving the Action Plan
One of our key findings when consulting with School Leaders and District Education Officers on managing this crisis is the importance of learning from a network of schools to facilitate quick decision making and problem solving as well as to foster speedy improvement in the schools’ current approaches. District Education Offices plays a pivotal role to provide a platform for School Leaders to reflect and learn from each other in handling the crisis.
Conclusion
One of the biggest tests that the COVID-19 brings to human values is the test of resilience. Its unpredicted ambiguity only presents a great deal of darkness where in the spring of hope therein lies despair. Just as how Charles Dickens describes the successes and downfall of Paris and London, where we are now trapped in an epoch of scepticism for a better forthcoming. This season of uncertainty is all the more reason for School Leaders and District Leaders to be guided and supported to adopt the practices outlined in this article in preparation for the new normal in education.
This article was written by Melissa Tanya Gomes, Co-Founder of Edvolution Enterprise which collaborates closely with the Ministry of Education Malaysia to create an ecosystem of continuous improvement for schools. Their flagship TEST (Teacher Empowerment for School Transformation) programme is currently being executed in more than twenty schools in Perlis and Penang.
At present, Edvolution Enterprise is working with state and district authorities as well as school leaders to implement an education response plan to the COVID-19 pandemic.
For more information on their ‘COVID-19 School Response Guideline’ or the TEST programme, you may check out their work on Facebook and Instagram. You may also drop them an email to enquiry@myedvolution.com.
