Learning Remotely When Schools are closed: A Case Study of a Rural School on Emergency Remote Learning

Abstract

A new normal has been established not only in Sri Lanka but also globally as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak. The Covid-19 pandemic undoubtedly provided the general population and practically all organizations with a remarkable impetus for reform. The pandemic scenario has had an impact on education. Even the government temporarily shuttered schools to stop the Covid-19 outbreak from spreading. One of the solutions put forth by institutions to continue education without interruption is distance learning. Unfortunately, transferring education quickly from classrooms to homes has significant technical and human hurdles, particularly in rural settings. The (unwritten) tales of the teachers who did their best to promote learning are told in this research, with particular reference to the rural context in Sri Lanka. The research issue that the author is concentrating on throughout the research study is “How does emergency remote learning continue in rural schools with special attention to secondary education”? The research study intends to: first, emphasize the difficulties that the school’s stakeholders faced; second, but perhaps more importantly, analyze the solutions or cures they used to deal with the difficulties. The study’s methodology was based on semi-structured interviews with 10 participants who worked as instructors at Mahasen Central College in the Kandy District of Sri Lanka’s Central Province. The author, who sincerely believes that this study added to the body of knowledge, desires to note the challenges faced and make a few suggestions for future investigations.