The Covid crisis had a deep impact on students in Luxembourg. Around 40,000 children were effectively put in quarantine between April 2020 and October 2021. This is a great challenge in terms of social equality, with a lot of open questions. “Upfoundation”, a foundation devoted to education, organised an expert conference to tackle these issues.
The pandemic only increased the gap between rich and poor, explains Gaston Ternes, president of the Scientific Council at Upfoundation. According to Statec, around a quarter of Luxembourg’s children are at risk of poverty.
During homeschooling, proper support at home was particularly critical, but parental guidance always plays an important role. For Philippe Meirieu, professor emeritus in educational sciences, parents must be shown how to support their children in their schooling.
Fake news, readily available in all corners of the Internet, present another big challenge. Children need to learn critical thinking and how to check their sources.
The conference at the Neumünster Abbey aimed to offer educators new paths to respond to these problems in future.
