Covid-19: Department of Education postpones the opening of schools

Deputy Minister for Basic Education Dr Reginah Mhaule provided an update on the proposed school calendar for the year on 15 January.

She said that the original pre-Coivd-19 school calendar had proposed that schools return on 13 January. However, due to the pandemic, the calendar had to be revised last year. The revised calendar proposed that teachers return to school on 25 January and learners return to school on 27 January.

During President Cyril Ramaphosa’s address to the nation on 11 January, he said that there was understandable concern about learners returning to school as the country battles its second surge of infections.

Mhaule said that on 12 and 13 January the Department of Education consulted with various stakeholders including the national school governing body associations, teacher unions, learner formations and others. She said, “All stakeholders were united in supporting a delay in the opening of schools.

“Given the pressure experienced by the health system in the past few weeks, occasioned by increased Covid-19 infections which have led to the second wave, the Council of Education Ministers in conjunction with the National Coronavirus Command Council and Cabinet, has taken the decision to delay the reopening of both public and private schools with two weeks.”

The @DBE_SA will work closely with all nine Provincial Education Departments, to establish the true extent of the impact of the virus, resulting from the unfortunate demise of educators, workers and leaders in the sector, especially during the Dec/Jan holidays #schoolsreopening

— Dr Reginah Mhaule (@ReginahMhaule) January 15, 2021

She said that this is being done to provide relief to the health system which is already struggling to cope with the current demands. Private schools that have already reopened will need to postpone their opening to a later date. Mzwandile Matthews, an advisor to the minister, said that there have been broad consultations with the bodies that coordinate private schools and they have agreed that they will persuade the schools that have already reopened to close and then reopen on the recommended date, 15 February.

For public schools and private schools which follow the same calendar, school management teams will return on 25 January, teachers will return on 1 February and learners will return on 15 February. She said that the school management teams will return earliest in order to prepare for the return of teachers and finalise any outstanding problems such as unplaced learners.

“The CEM [Council of Education Ministers] took this difficult decision, having considered all factors as backed up by research and statistics, regarding the current state of the health system. The priority remains saving lives.”

Our primary responsibility is to save the lives of teachers and learners. The current #Covid19 variant is very deadly and affects young and old. We will be guided by @HealthZA on all health protocols that need to be followed @DBE_SA @ElijahMhlanga @GovernmentZA #schoolsreopening pic.twitter.com/TUnYaRvNg3

— Dr Reginah Mhaule (@ReginahMhaule) January 15, 2021

Mhaule added that the basic education sector has also felt the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic during the marking of the National Senior Certificate exams. The department will be meeting soon to discuss this impact. Matthews said that the proposed date of releasing the matric results, 22 February, will remain in place unless the minister and Umalusi Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education and Training and other relevant bodies make a different determination.

She highlighted that they are still working to improve e-learning, particularly in rural areas where there are challenges with connectivity, however, there has been much support from various stakeholders to assist learners in these areas.

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