Research essays for our 'lost cohort'

With our final year students no longer facing May examinations how can we occupy them and provide some academic focus? This page suggests a research focus on the current pandemic.

Rationale

Our students are preparing for university and in any normal year the students work to themselves to a crescendo with intense revision and review of their courses and final examinations. This gives them a wealth of knnowledge and skills that confirms their readiness for university and motivates them to continue in their chosen higher education courses. We in secondary education can continue to support them in this goal by providing them with useful focused learning opportunities. With this in mind I've set up a research essay for my year 13s.

Research Essays

Start by getting them thinking about University and the type of assessment that takes place. For the majority of group 3 students for my school, this will be research essay based.

We are obsessing with Covid-19 but how healthy is this? There are some opportunities for learning here. Could we direct students into a research essay.

Start by asking them what they have read, and where they are getting their news from. Some, by now, might not be reading/watching the news or trying to avoid the sensationalism. Others might be thinking more critically about how it is being managed and about whether the consequences of the severe responses are worth it. Others might be considering what social, economic, political factors influence the different types of responses countries choose to take. They will all have a different focus and interest.

Following a student discussion on this topic I asked students to share their links to reputable articles and reports based on Covid-19 as well as to share their own key interest. I set them a target to read up to 10 different reports.

From the titles they sent through and their suggested interests I have suggested the following 5 research essay titles. I would like them to choose one to focus on.

Essay titles

1. Discuss the view that the social-economic consequences of the responses to Covid-19 will outweigh the direct impacts of the virus itself.
2. Discuss the view that it is countries who suffered the 2002 SARS epidemic that have responded best to Covid -19
3. The responses to Covid-19 will be driven by the geo-political policies and fundamentals of their own national identity rather than any guiding humanitarian principle. With reference to clear examples discuss this view
4. Moving forwards, the Covid -19 virus has exponentially increased what countries know about managing and responding to global pandemics. Discuss how lessons learned will inform future pandemic responses
5. Covid-19 has proved that pandemics are by far the biggest threat to the global economy. With reference to the economic consequences of Covid-19 discuss the extent to which you agree with this statement

A Selection of Reading

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/3-charts-that-changed-coronavirus-policy-in-the-uk-and-us/

https://www.imperial.ac.uk/media/imperial-college/medicine/sph/ide/gida-fellowships/Imperial-College-COVID19-NPI-modelling-16-03-2020.pdf

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590053620300161

https://www.ccn.com/why-the-stock-market-recovery-wont-survive-the-covid-19-depression/

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/03/19/coronavirus-effect-economy-life-society-analysis-covid-135579

https://www.vox.com/2020/3/24/21191557/trump-coronavirus-economy-reopen-social-distance

https://www.statnews.com/2020/03/20/understanding-what-works-how-some-countries-are-beating-back-the-coronavirus/

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/education-plus-development/2020/03/11/covid-19-outbreak-highlights-critical-gaps-in-school-emergency-preparedness/

https://www.euractiv.com/section/energy-environment/opinion/covid-19-stimulus-should-address-health-economy-and-climate-together/

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/03/bill-gates-epidemic-pandemic-preparedness-ebola-covid-19/

https://www.iotworldtoday.com/2020/03/24/cybersecurity-crisis-management-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic/