Cape Town – The return of principals, school management teams (SMTs), education assistants, general assistants and non-teaching staff, to school on Monday has been met with mixed emotions.
Progressive Principals’ Association chairperson Faiq Salie welcomed the return of staff and said schools should by now have all their management plans in place for the academic year.
He said their return would provide schools with sufficient time to put safety measures in place for learners when they return on February 15.
However, the executive director of the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of SA, Basil Manuel, said although teachers’ unions and organisations were consulted on the delayed reopening of schools, they were not consulted on the department’s decision on the return of SMTs and teachers.
“Had we been consulted, our first question would have been, ‘What for?’ What must a SMT now do at school for 21 days prior to the reopening of schools when this was not required for the envisaged reopening on January 27?” he asked.
Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga released government Notice 18 of 2021 on Friday to amend the dates for the start of the 2021 academic year.
The Department of Basic Education (DBE) then decided that principals and SMTs – including educational assistants, general assistants and non-teaching staff – should return to school on January 25, while teachers were expected to return on February 1 and learners on February 15.
Western Cape Education Department spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said although the department was still accessing Monday’s attendance figures, they were informed all schools did open and the department was ready for the return of its staff.
Education law specialist and the deputy chief executive of the Federation of Governing Bodies of SA Schools, Dr Jaco Deacon, said the organisation did not support the delay in the opening of schools, and did not understand the rationale for requiring staff to return when there were no learners.
“We received no satisfactory answers from the DBE to our questions about these decisions. Why should SMTs and eventually all staff go to work when their learners are not present? The learners cannot benefit from the planning that was done before the staff left on holiday at the end of last year.”
DBE spokesperson Elijah Mhlanga said teachers and/or support staff who failed to report for duty as stipulated without a valid and approved reason would face disciplinary action.
He said all other cases of absenteeism should be dealt with in terms of the relevant leave provisions.
The general secretary of the National Association of School Governing Bodies, Matakanya Matakanye, said the safety of staff was in the hands of the DBE, which should ensure there was enough personal protective equipment and that all schools had running water.
Cape Argus