2023, Vol. 5, Issue 1, Part B

The COVID-19 pandemic is the most significant health crisis that the world has faced in the past 100 years. It has disrupted our way of living with unprecedented consequences for our daily lives, including how we work and learn. According to estimates from the International Labour Organization (ILO), 14 per cent of working hours were lost globally in the second quarter of 2020 when compared to the last quarter of 2019 (ILO 2020a). The situation jeopardizes the accomplishment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS), in particular Goal 8: "Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all," and its target 8.5, which calls for the achievement, by 2030, of full and productive employment and decent work for all. Education in India needs to improve by leaps and bounds, espeially in remote corners and rural areas. There is a need to upgrade teaching methodologies, plug the shortage of teachers, improve the student- teacher ratio, and enhance knowledge resources. E-learning is going to be the face of future education in the country. Currently, both the learner and the academia are embracing e-learning methodology more as a temporary solution for Covid-19 times, but the need is to take e-learning forward and add it as a long-term framework to existing learning models. With the internet becoming affordable affordable and more accessible, we will have a greater convergence of digital and traditional teaching-learning mediums.

This report is based on the findings of an interagency survey on technical and vocational education and training (TVET) and skills development in the time of COVID-19. The online survey, which was targeted at TVET providers, policymakers and social partners, was implemented by the ILO in collaboration with the UNESCO and the World Bank over the period from 05 April to 15 May 2020.