Lockdown Challenges Students

For the second consecutive year, high school students will sit their High School Certificate exams in unconventional circumstances.

Successive lockdowns have challenged students in an extraordinary way, sitting exams at home and with minimal face-to-face engagement with teachers.

In an ordinary year, the pressure of HSC exams is already high. The last two years have seen additional challenges exacerbate these pressures. We must recognise and acknowledge the strain on mental health for students, their families and teachers in this period.

Online learning is an alternative that allows students to continue their studies but the burden lies in a student's capacity to learn online.

A report by the Australian Education Union showed that in 2020 there were over 2500 public school students without internet access at home in South West Sydney, including mobile phone internet access. The highest in the state. Another example of our part of the world being let down by the second rate roll out of the NBN.

The fact that not everyone has access to fast broadband means some in our community are being left behind. It shows a deep inequality for students from disadvantaged backgrounds with many left to fend for themselves.

Thank you to all the educators for your dedication and support of our students, I wish everyone about to embark on exams all the best.

Published in the Liverpool Champion on 20 September 2020: https://www.liverpoolchampion.com.au/story/7436970/werriwa-matters-with-anne-stanley-lockdown-challenges-students/