DURBAN - EDUCATION stakeholders believe that schools have to return to a semblance of normality, with teachers and pupils learning to live with the Covid-19 pandemic as failure to do this could cripple the country’s education system.
Spelling out the disadvantages of the current situation, education experts said while pupils sit at home they are not getting the quality education they need.
On Friday, Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga issued directives that all primary school and special needs school pupils should return to daily attendance and traditional timetables from July 26.
For almost a year, several primary schools have been attending classes on alternative days to limit the number of pupils in schools in order to adhere to Covid-19 safety protocols, including social distancing. However, the latest move has left other stakeholders confused as the country is partially in the grip of a third wave of the pandemic, with Covid-19 cases increasing. There have also been reports of cases of Covid19 infections in schools.
Matakanye Matakanye of the National Association of School Governing Bodies said parents should ensure that all safety precautions were adhered to.
“We are in support of the decision to return to class but we want the department to ensure that teachers and the pupils are safe, to make sure that all the necessary precautions like access to water, and the wearing of masks, are in place. It is important that these measures are adhered to, to ensure that we do not face a situation where schools might be closed again.
“We must learn to live with the pandemic because if we do not we will not have an education system in the country,” he said.
Matakanye said the department’s decision to call for the resumption of full classes was understandable.
“These young people go to class once a week and the concern is that by the time they attend the next class, they have forgotten (the work from the previous lesson).”
Sibusiso Malinga, acting president of the National Teachers Union, said they supported the announcement but added: “We will not allow a situation where schools are reopened under unsafe conditions, resulting in death.
“We were briefed by the department and they informed us that they have done research that shows that children under the age of 12 are not easily infected and if that is the truth, we are in support of schools reopening.
“We expect the department to adhere to all safety measures and we urge all teachers not to keep quiet when there is overcrowding in their classrooms,” he said.
The SA Democratic Teachers Union general secretary, Mugwena Maluleke, said the union would adopt a waitand-see attitude and monitor how the situated changed before July 26.
He said they have put forward conditions that should be met as part of the support for teachers, especially those who have comorbidities.
Professor Labby Ramrathan, director of the School of Education Studies at UKZN, said it should be made clear that the plans by the department could be subject to change. He described the move as a positive step.
Vee Gani of the KZN Parents Association said it was important to bring the children back to school and restore normality, but in light of the third wave and the rising infections this may be not the right time to do that.
THE MERCURY