Interview with Rafael Barea

In a recent interview for Fibwi, Rafael Barea, head of Agora Portals International School, explains the experience of digital transformation of the classes since the closing of schools on March 13 and the subsequent decree of the state of alarm. The school started online classes on the next labour day after the school closed and the experience in these little more than two months has been very positive.

Rafael Barea highlights the quick response of the school, which had already incorporated the necessary technological solutions in advance, and the commitment of the teachers, who have been able to continue classes from home with the same schedules, syllabi or exams and with an exceptional student response. Regarding the students, he emphasizes that the quality of the work is now superior, since they have more time and don’t have the distractions they may have in class. In addition, online classes have had a 98% follow-up, a higher percentage than class attendance.

Rafael Barea also talks in the interview about the necessary security measures so that the students can return to school and, although remote learning does not allow for the socialization of the students or the healthcare work carried out with the youngest ones, he believes that the online classes are here to stay: students will thus be able to follow classes while traveling, not miss calls due to illness or receive expert master classes from other schools around the world thanks to the network of more than 50 schools in the Globeducate international group.

Finally, Rafael Barea underlines the importance of being in solidarity, being united and sharing resources with those who need them most. Agora Portals, for example, has collaborated with other institutions by donating school notebooks so that students without resources can follow classes online and continue their learning.

View the full interview in Fibwi.