New Educational Challenges due to Covid-19
Unfortunately, the transition to remote learning and new social distancing guidelines have posed many students and education nonprofits with new challenges:
1. Free and Reduced Lunches
According to NPR, the thirty million K-12 students who previously relied on their schools free or reduced lunch programs are at an especially high risk during this pandemic. Only fifteen percent of students have been able to continue getting those meals. For some, school lunches were the only meal that they received throughout the day (Turner).2. Internet Access
According to USAFacts, over nine million K-12 students do not have internet access at home, which makes participation in online classes and the completion of coursework nearly impossible. These fourteen percent of families lack connection for a variety of reasons."34% reported not having internet because they were unable to afford it, 4% because they did not have a home computer, and 4% because an internet connection was not available in their area. This means at least 42% of children without home internet will face barriers to connectivity" ("4.4 Million Households with Children Don’t Have Consistent Access to Computers for Online Learning during the Pandemic").
