Adaptation
“ADULT LEARNING AND EDUCATION AS A TOOL TO CONTAIN PANDEMICS: THE COVID-19 EXPERIENCE”: AN ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTING THE IMPORTANCE OF LBS By Pascale Lacelle // Freelance Writer-Editor
The current battle against COVID-19 cannot be won alone. Everyone—communities and all of society—have a role to play.
The relationship between an individual and a group has been emphasized since the beginning of the pandemic, with the actions of one having a direct impact on the lives of all. To reduce the number of new infections, citizens need to take responsibility, but first they need to know how to avoid the snowball effect that each of their actions can have on the people around them. This is why having access to information is crucial in such uncertain times, and understanding such information all the more so. But what happens if a person doesn’t have the basic literacy and numeracy skills needed to understand this information? This is the topic that is discussed in the article “Adult learning and education as a tool to contain pandemics: The COVID-19 experience,”1 in which authors argue that so-called illiterate or lowliterate adults may be less receptive to education on health issues. This is why adult learning and education (ALE), “especially the promotion of health literacy as part of ALE (which is itself part of lifelong learning), is necessary to enable individuals to make informed health-related decisions.” This article, which appears in the International Review of Education, stresses the importance of understanding ALE “as an inherent element of every national emergency strategy” such as the one we are experiencing today.
To have a society that is prepared to respond quickly and fully to a pandemic such as COVID-19, it is essential for its citizens to be properly equipped and well informed. This means having the basic literacy skills—reading, writing, numeracy and computer skills—that will enable them to make informed decisions in such situations. It goes without saying that the work performed within the Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) network is important at all times, helping Ontarians find jobs, use online communication tools and get involved with confidence in their communities. However, what is being recognized now is that, in the context of the pandemic, LBS services are becoming essential services.
Henrique Lopes and Veronica McKay, “Adult Learning and education as a tool to contain pandemics: The COVID-19 experience,” International Review of Education 66 (2020): 575-602, https:// doi.org/10.1007/s11159-020-09843-0. 1
23
