Waste of millions, conflicting guidelines and only 11 full school days:
The education system opens another school year tomorrow (Wednesday), but in a report published today, Netanyahu Engelman, the State Comptroller, floods the many failures of distance learning during the previous closures (March 2020 to August 2021).
Unfortunately, some of the problems in the report still exist in the education system, and raise great concern given the fact that this year, too, some of the learning will be online.
The report addresses one of the most significant issues in distance learning - the shortage of computers. Indeed, the ministry has distributed more than 137,000 laptops to end-to-end students and more than 12,000 laptops to teachers.
However, the information gathered about the end measures found in households is inaccurate and does not reflect the real situation and needs on the ground.
An inspection conducted at the Comptroller's Office revealed from districts and principals that at the end of the third closure, there was still a shortage of computers for students as well as a shortage of infrastructure - which constitutes a barrier to distance learning.
State Comptroller's Report: Distance Learning and Learning in the Corona Crisis
Another issue concerns the outlines and the multiplicity of guidelines, the date of their publication and the contradictions between them "drove" parents, teachers and school principals crazy.
The report states that in practice the Ministry of Education, in its various divisions, has produced at least dozens of outlines, procedures, guidelines and letters regarding distance learning and conduct during the Corona period.
Thus, for example, between March 2020 and February 2021, the ministry published at least five outlines for returning to school and more than 100 guidelines regarding addressing the emotional state of students and teachers.
Difficulties in learning itself
The auditor's report touches on one of the most painful issues in the system - many students do not have 21st century learning skills that allow them independent learning, distinguishing between reliable texts, problem solving and more. -Culturally their parents also had financial difficulties, as well as students of parents belonging to the ultra-Orthodox society and the Arab society - with an emphasis on Bedouin society.
State Comptroller Netanyahu Engelman // Photo: Oren Ben Hakon,
According to the comptroller, the distance learning method, which is one of the most advanced learning tools, may actually deepen the gap between students - a gap that already exists in the State of Israel - and thus also increase inequality.
To address these gaps, the Ministry of Education is required to provide students with the appropriate skills for learning in the 21st century, including providing them with digital literacy and a set of skills that will enable self-learning.
As already reported, a large proportion of students chose not to connect to Zoom.
However, although it announced an obligation to attend online classes, the Ministry of Education did not require quantitative reporting from schools on the extent of students' participation in distance learning, and therefore did not have data that could allow it to monitor its implementation of guidelines.
It also emerged that the ministry did not issue an orderly directive that clarifies whether it is mandatory or permissible to operate cameras in the students' end means, and if this can indeed be required - who is the person who may order it.
The report also states that the Ministry of Education expanded the recorded lessons during the Corona, with an investment of about NIS 20 million, although the data in its possession indicated a decrease in the number of views from about 376,000 in March 2020 to 112,000 views in November 2020. The recorders were not accompanied by a quality test - both pedagogically and technically.
Between back to class and distance learning // Photo: Yehoshua Yosef,
Teachers do not know how to teach remotely
Another topic that has been discussed a lot is the lack of training of teachers for distance learning.
The report states that the level of teacher training for this before the corona was a barrier to their readiness for distance learning with the outbreak of the plague, and that the Ministry of Education does not have a full database on teacher training in general and distance learning in particular.
The report also reveals the number of days each age group spent at home, indicating that there were a total of 81 days of closure and another 144 days of vacation and holiday. Only 11 days - compared to first-third students who had 139 days in schools, and fourth-graders with 91 days.
Those who suffered the most were middle school students (grades 7-9) who spent 53 days in distance learning even when there was no closure, and tenth-grade students who did so for only 43 days.
Studies in Zoom (Archive, the subject has nothing to do with the news) // Photo: Liron Moldoven, Liron Moldoven
A jump in the volume of businesses that allow you to work from home
Remote work is not a new thing, but there is no doubt that the corona period we have been in for the past year and a half has moved it to a very high place on the list of things that had to be addressed following the stubborn virus.
Many organizations, including government ministries, were required to work remotely during this period to ensure functional continuity and service to citizens, and this is indeed one of the important issues addressed by the State Comptroller.
Between May 2020 and February 2021, the Comptroller's Office examined the various aspects related to the preparation of government ministries for a period of remote work and the hybrid model.
The inspection was carried out in the Ministries of the Interior, Transport and Road Safety, Science and Technology, Law, Environmental Protection and even in the Ministry of Finance and the National Cyber Network.
On the one hand, the findings showed a huge improvement in the abilities of many organizations in Israel - including in the government sector - to maintain functional continuity even when a large part of the organization's employees work remotely and are not in the office.
But on the other hand, the State Comptroller reveals that we are still a long way from a system that works continuously and without glitches in all sectors, especially in light of the assessment that the scope of remote work will only increase in the coming years.
Working From Home // Illustration Photography: Getty Images,
The auditor examined many aspects of remote work: what benefits do we derive from such a model, what are the disadvantages and what challenges do the government and citizens face - whether it is environmental, economic or social benefits, both for the employer and the employee;
And whether these are the obvious disadvantages of difficulties in supervising employees, the social isolation from which they suffer, the risks in securing information and maintaining privacy.
In Israel, the numbers have increased significantly, and from 4 percent in 2018, we reached a rate of about 40 percent of the businesses that allow full or part-time work from home.
During the emergency period, which lasted from the end of March to the end of April 2020, more than 50 percent of the essential workers in government ministries worked from home.
By the way, according to the report, more women worked from home during the Corona period than men.
The State Comptroller urges the government to continue the plan that has been formulated in recent years, to establish a clear IT policy and orderly procedures - including the allocation of appropriate communication infrastructure and technological solutions, which will enable employees to work from home.
This is when the connection is proper and information security will be sufficient to ensure the continuity of public and private functioning, until a new reality is created that will enable the benefits inherent in this work format to be utilized, while addressing the challenges it poses.