Covid-19 has had a massive impact on education throughout the world and Rosebank Primary School is no exception. Principal at the school, Leigh Shaw-Taylor said having to close schools, forced teachers to come up with innovative and unique ways of reaching their classes.
“Teachers care very much about the education and well-being of the learners under their instruction and are extremely concerned about the overall and long-term impact that the pandemic has and will continue to have on young children.”
She said that during lockdown, some of their teachers even went so far as to visit learners in hospital, kept in contact with parents and learners via ClassDojo (an educational technology company) and email and formed online reading groups where, at the same time every day, the teacher and the learners would login and share a story or just talk about how things were going.
“Children are truly amazing beings – when schools opened in July, although apprehensive, they quickly adapted to the new routine of temperature scanning, screening questionnaires, and sitting alone at a desk in the classroom, apart from their friends,” she added.
“Even break time routines changed; no longer can you hear the joyous laughter while they kick a soccer ball on the field or skip on the court. Now, children sit on the field and chat to each other across a distance of 1m – more if they are conversing with a friend further away.”
She applauded the Rosebank Primary parents and said it has been an extremely difficult year in all aspects, but the parents did their utmost to ensure that their children were at school and did their best to ensure that school fees were paid. By paying school fees, the School Governing Body (SGB) was able to continue to pay salaries and ensure that the school is able to continue to provide the best possible education and teaching and learning environment for the children enrolled at the school.
“I’d like to also send out a huge thank you to the Dunkeld Village Association and ONQSA (a company which contributes towards the feeding scheme) for their support with the school’s own feeding scheme. Because of this, we can provide a small meal to children who might otherwise be starving.
“As we approach the end of the 2020 academic year, I want to express my sincerest thanks to the Rosebank community for their continued patronage and wish everyone all the best for the festive season. Keep safe by adhering to regulations and let’s look forward to the promise of a happier 2021.”
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https://www.citizen.co.za/rosebank-killarney-gazette/270319/wonderful-start-rosebank-primary-schools-grade-1s-first-day/
