School holidays may be scrapped to salvage 2020 academic year – Motshekga

School holidays may be scrapped in order to recover lost time as Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga contemplates the best way to salvage the 2020 academic year.

This is one of the proposals being considered by the department.

Even before the lockdown started last month, Ramaphosa announced that schools would be closed to deal with the coronavirus outbreak. With the lockdown extended to end April, schools will have been closed for over six weeks.

Motshekga’s spokesperson, Elijah Mhlanga, said the department is supporting President Cyril Ramaphosa’s implementation of the lockdown to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said a team of experts was currently working on a plan for how schools would eventually be reopened. The team will also determine when some or all schools would reopen once the lockdown is lifted.

“The 2020 academic year is possible and we will rescue it. We have a plan in place to rescue lost time. One of our plans might be to do away with the coming school holidays to recover lost time,” said Mhlanga.

“Once all schools are opened, there is also a recovery plan to assist our pupils to catch up on lost time.”

Mhlanga added that they have online, radio and television educational programmes that are assisting pupils during the lockdown.