Research summary
School closures, program cuts and teacher attrition during the COVID-19 pandemic have worsened the educational inequities already faced by disadvantaged children. The diminished access to technology, English learning opportunities and other resources also resulted in significant losses in language and literacy among these groups of children. As Canada Research Chair in Transnational/Global Perspectives on Language and Literacy Education of Children and Youth, Dr. Guofang Li aims to address these educational inequities.
She and her research team are working to better understand the extent of literacy development loss during the pandemic among bilingual children from minority backgrounds. They are also identifying different factors in schools, homes and communities that have contributed to this loss. Ultimately, their goal is to better prepare teachers for teaching super-diverse student populations and ensure all students have equitable access to learning opportunities.