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在校生による新ブログ【Idea Canvas】6

DATE : 2020/11/16

情報社会を生き抜く主体性

 

各国で相次ぐ感染者数の増加

 11月8日に新型コロナウイルスの感染者数が累計5000万人を超えたことが、米ジョンズ・ホプキンス大学の集計で明らかになった。多くの国で第二波が到来し、複数の国で1日の新規感染者数が過去最多を記録している。日本でも北海道を筆頭に感染者数は増加傾向にあり、新たな対策が必要だという見解が増えている。第一波が収束した時点で、様々な国が打ち出した対策に対して、賛否両論の声が巻き起こった。当初は批判しておきながらも、意外にも成功した国に対してあっけなく手の平を返すメディアや、国民が政策に納得しているのにもかかわらず、他国の人間が批判を行っているのを見て、少し報道や批判の方向性に疑問を感じられずにはいられなかった。

 

メディアによる印象操作

 私がよく目にするのは、常に批判の声である。日本はPCRなどの検査数が足りていない、ビッグデータの活用が不十分である、市民とのコミュニケーションが取れていない、などは多くの批判の中の一部にしか過ぎない。私はこういった批判の声や、多様な視点の存在は、課題解決に至る道筋の中で必要であることは重々理解できるが、市民の不安を煽るだけのように感じられる報道の姿勢の意図はどこにあるのだろうかと感じた。メディアが言うように、感染者数を出さずに、経済を回すことのできる完璧な政策を求めるべきなのはもちろんのことだ。しかし、収束を目指しつつ今までのような生活を送ろうとするには、課題が多く存在し、その多くの課題に囚われすぎて、すべてが中途半端な結果になってしまうのであれば、最善策を取るのが常套手段であろう。

 

報道に惑わされないための自分軸の確立

 多くの情報がこの世の中には存在するが、報道は実態を伝えているのだろうか。もっと言えば、報道が伝えているものは、私たちに必要な情報なのだろうか。伝えたいことを強調するために集めたエビデンスには、偏りが生じることもあることを私たちは理解しなければならない。私たち市民が一番知る必要があることは、課題解決に向けてそれぞれが社会にどういう貢献ができるのか、ということではないだろうか。例えば検査数が少ないのであれば、どう私たちが増やすことができるのか、などの私たちが活かせる報道が増えるべきだと感じる。ここ数日間の感染者の増加や、他国の傾向なども鑑みると、高確率で日本にも急激な感染者が増加することが予想されている(もちろんこの情報の信ぴょう性も定かではないのかもしれないが)。国としての政策も重要であるが、見えない敵に立ち向かうには、すべての人がそれぞれの立場で貢献することが求められる。そのためには、報道は批判ではなく提案を、そして、それを受け取る私たち市民は、自分事として主体的に課題と向き合い、賢明な判断のもとに行動を起こしていくべきなのではないだろうか。

 

生徒の皆さんからも文章をお待ちしております。コメントやフィードバックもTwitterアカウント https://twitter.com/the_idea_canvas , または theideacanvas1903@gmail.com までお願いします。

 

日本と何が違う?欧州「強烈な第2波」のなぜ

https://toyokeizai.net/articles/-/382853

 

世界の新型ウイルス感染者、5000万人超える

https://www.bbc.com/japanese/54868689

 

新型コロナ対策で露呈した日本の問題は?

https://medical.nikkeibp.co.jp/leaf/mem/pub/report/t344/202011/567819.html

 

Russia says its Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine is 92% effective

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/11/12/world/science-health-world/russia-coronavirus-vaccine-results/

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COVID-19 and its lasting legacy

 

The pandemic that started December of last year has yet to abate, and it looks like a life free from the virus is a long way away. With the ‘anniversary’ of the inaugural coronavirus case nearing, I want to take a look at how this pandemic has affected us as students, and how it will continue to do so in the future.

 

In education. In my case, Google Classroom had already been integrated as part of our learning system before the pandemic, however, I almost never used it. Flash forward a year or so, and most, if not all of my assignments are both assigned and submitted on Google Classroom. On the crowded rush hour trains that my peers and I use to commute to school, as well as inside every building and classroom, masks are a must; temperature monitors and alcohol dispensers are everywhere. Around my desk sits a small wall of clear plastic, protecting me from my peers. A lot of these changes look like they are here to stay.

 

Many of these observations are limited in their scope, to what a high school student can see or feel in their daily life. But the larger effects of COVID-19 will continue. Inequality, whether based on race, gender or wealth will rise. The gap between those who have and those who don’t will open. The slowed economy and gap in learning could create another ‘lost generation’.

 

I can’t fathom the scale of this pandemic. More than 51 million confirmed cases, more than 1.2 million confirmed deaths. It’s absolutely mindboggling. It’s been nearly a year since the pandemic started. I can remember joking around with friends, wondering if we might get ‘lucky’, and be able to snag a few days of vacation. Within a week, we had been ordered home, finals canceled, and would spend the next 4 months without setting foot inside school again.

 

In recent days, the number of new daily cases in Japan has slowly risen. Tokyo’s totals, once seemingly plateauing at around 200 cases is stretching to reach 300, daily. The northernmost island of Hokkaido, reporting just 16 cases on the 30th of September has seen an exponential rise in cases, over 100 for more than 5 days (at the time of writing, 11/11/2020). Perhaps it is the cold of winter, weakening immune systems, and leaving us vulnerable to the coronavirus.

 

It is not only Japan that has seen a rise in cases. The United States, amidst a presidential transition continues to break records: in daily new cases, total cases and more. Europe is suffering, with France, Spain and more nearly equal to the United States in cases per million people. (https://covid19.who.int/) Is there an end in sight?

 

There is some good news. Recently, one of the world’s largest biopharmaceutical companies, Pfizer, announced that they had managed to create a vaccine with 90% effectivity. This is an undoubtably large step in the race to find a vaccine. However, COVID-19 has already wrought havoc. While some major economies have started to pick up, there are many challenges ahead, as well as some industries that face much worse than others. Indeed, earlier this month, All Nippon Airways, Japan’s largest airline, reported an

estimated record net loss in the region of 510 billion yen in the current business year, their largest loss ever. As the number of cases spreads, and lockdowns resume in countries all around the world, the situation for small businesses, especially restaurants, grows untenable.

 

The first term of my senior year, spent entirely at home, using cameras and microphones to recreate a classroom environment. My last year in high school, here at Kaetsu, and it flew by in a blur. Days of being at home melted days into weeks, weeks into months, and the time seemed to vanish before my eyes. It didn’t feel real. The realization that I’m about to take a huge step forward hasn’t really set in yet. I feel unready, uncertain, simply unprepared for the things that lie ahead. COVID, of course, is not entirely to blame. But the lack of a proper school environment certainly made the time pass quickly, as well as rob me of time my classmates, some of whom I may never see again.

 

What changes has COVID-19 brought to your life? The lives of those around you? What worries, emotions have the pandemic uncovered inside of you? We want to hear from you. Message us, comment, or give us feedback at https://twitter.com/the_idea_canvas

 

 

Further reading:

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/12/business/economy/economy-covid-stimulus.html?

action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/12/business/pfizer-covid-vaccine-coronavirus.html?

action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20201110_80/

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