SHOTLIST:

1. Various of empty schools in Argentina
2. Various of students in South African schools
3. Various of empty classrooms in Venezuela
4. various of students in Latin American classrooms (file)

STORYLINE:

More than a billion students globally are facing the non-traditional school in the midst of the pandemic of coronavirus attending online classes all over the World.

Only a few countries have opened schools. They include Norway, France and New Zealand, as well as Nicaragua, Taiwan and Vietnam. On the other hand, 143 countries have instituted country-wide closures.

According to data from UNICEF and UNESCO, less than one in 10 school students around the world are enjoying regular in-person teaching.

In Argentina, in recent weeks, Covid-19 infections have spread throughout the country. Previously concentrated in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (AMBA), today there are no provinces exempt from new cases. The epidemiological situation changed the scenario regarding the return to classrooms and, for now, only three districts confirmed that they will return in August, as originally planned.

In Colombia, the Bogotá local government considers that, as long as a decrease in COVID-19 is not evident in the Colombian capital, it is impossible to return to classrooms in August, as originally planned.

This situation is repeated in most Latin American countries, in which, at the beginning of the quarantine, a return to the classroom was planned between July and August, foreseeing that the application of the quarantine would generate a downward curve in the cases, but quite to the contrary, cases continue to grow in most countries.

European countries with warmer weather - like Italy, which plans to open schools September 14 - are focusing on the outdoor lessons that the World Health Organization recommended in their safety plans, including more trips to venues like amphitheaters, stadiums, parks and open-air museums .

The World Health Organization recommends 54-point checklist. That level of adjustment means that even in rich countries, the potential for missteps is high. South Korea delayed reopening five times.

Most countries that have successfully sent children back to school opted to stagger reopening, starting with the youngest children first.

For developing countries, the challenges are compounded by a lack of basic health and financial support. Reopening schools safely poses particular problems places where reliably clean water supplies for hand washing are not a given and the cost of daily face masks and other protective equipment would break existing education budgets.

Even before the pandemic hit, it was a struggle getting children into classrooms in many countries. UNESCO estimates 258 million children were already out of school, a number that is set to rise.