Mexican President Lopez Obrador has announced a “historic agreement” between the federal education system and four television networks – media giants Televisa and TV Azteca, as well as the smaller Grupo Imagen and Multimedios – to broadcast classes starting August 24 to young people homebound in the pandemic, thus discarding in-person classes for the start of the 2019-2020 school cycle.
The federal plan for televised classes – supported by free textbooks– is seen to be more inclusive than online learning, since many students lack internet access, while television reaches more – 93 percent in Jalisco.
The president announced 450 million pesos in expenditures for the program, although the plan still lacks much detail. But it culminates months of hand-wringing about the fate of the 30 million students served by Mexico’s education system, Secretaria de Educacion Publica (SEP), which has achieved the nation’s high literacy rate (95 percent) and is fast nearing its 100th anniversary.
Few aspects of the coronavirus pandemic affect more Mexicans and cause stronger reactions than the closing of educational institutions. Including the multitude of private schools with the public ones, plus public and private universities, parents, teachers and administrators (not to mention schools of dance, swimming, language and more), education adds up to an enormous concern in this child-oriented nation.
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