COVID-19: Let’s Hear It From The Kids
In this six-minute video story, children tell us what they know about COVID-19 and how they process life during the pandemic. Yasmin Mapua Tang from the Philippines, who did this story as part of her masteral coursework for development communication at the University of the Philippines’ Open University, shares some takeaways from this project:
Q: What can kids teach us?
Tang: One thing our kids can teach us is that they should be given a chance to speak up on issues that concern them, and we need to really listen. They know that COVID-19 is very scary but there are ways to protect themselves, be safe, and have fun in the process.
Q: What could be a good follow-up story to this?
Tang: A good follow-up story would be a similar video but with children from different backgrounds. I am both excited and apprehensive to find out if they have similar thoughts about the COVID situation.
Click here to watch: https://bit.ly/KidCovidConvos
To talk to the eight children through March 2020, soon after the Enhanced Community Quarantine was announced in the Philippine capital, she first introduced the idea and mechanics to their parents. Some interviews were done by the parents, others were done with her over Zoom, Facebook messenger and Viber, and one was done in person. All involved the use of smartphones.
(END/JS/RA)
