Directions: Read the following passage carefully and answer the questions that follow. 

As the COVID-19 pandemic worsened in countries across the globe, most governments took the precaution of closing their schools in an attempt to contain the spread of the virus. In Japan, each week of school closures represents about 22 hours of face-to-face compulsory instruction time at lower secondary school. 

The capacity of schools to innovate, adapt and support staff varies from country to country and school to school. Yet it is these school capacities that can prove to be valuable assets for responding to crises and uncertain times, as well as building resilience when facing challenges in delivering instruction. School closures have forced many schools to “(_______)” and come up with innovative and pragmatic solutions in order to deliver teaching and ensure learning can happen remotely. The good news is that in spite of the challenges that the transition to remote teaching may have entailed for some teachers, a climate of openness to innovation was present in most OECD schools. School leaders and teachers may also be able to tap into online resources that could facilitate the dissemination of information, instructional material and remote learning across schools. For example, familiarity with online training can prepare teachers for communicating and sharing information with the school community through online platforms. In Japan, 9% of teachers participated in online courses/seminars in the 12 months prior to the survey, which is lower than the average of the OECD countries participating in TALIS (36%). These online courses/seminars proved to be very helpful for the teachers during the crisis.

Although the absence of in-person lessons can be somewhat compensated by the use of online platforms and other technology-rich activities, access to the necessary digital devices is not equally distributed across the population. In particular, students from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds who lack the means to access to these devices may be severely affected by the COVID-19 crisis, increasing learning inequalities as a result. The conditions for creating an adequate climate for home schooling not only rely on access to technology, but also on whether an appropriate physical space for learning exists at home. Much like access to computers, access to a quiet place to study may also have deteriorated during the crisis due to similar needs by parents for teleworking, and siblings for home schooling.

The relationship between schools, parents and the larger school community is vital to provide contextualised and pertinent quality education. An open and fluid interaction between the school staff and parents has become now more important than ever.