Schools will not open on January 27 as scheduled, after the announcement on Friday that the reopening of public and private schools will be delayed by two weeks.
The decision by the Department of Basic Education comes after meetings with several stakeholders this week and recommendations from the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) that the reopening of schools for pupils be postponed to 15 February as a result of spiralling Covid-19 cases.
“The priority remains saving lives,” said Deputy Minister of Basic Education Dr Reginah Mhaule at the briefing.
The basic education sector has already felt the pressure of the pandemic, during the marking of the 2020 National Senior Certificate exams, where some markers died from the virus, she said.
In recent weeks trade unions also voiced concern about the department’s readiness to reopen schools, with Cosatu saying the lack of a plan could have grave consequences.
Pressure from trade and teacher unions for the department to present its plan came as nearly 1, 700 teachers in the country died after contracting Covid-19, Daily Maverick reported.
On Monday, President Cyril Ramaphosa told the nation there was “understandably concern” about the opening of schools and other educational institutions amid the second wave. He said the NCCC was dealing with the issue and would give its recommendations in the days that followed.
Education stakeholders – including the Council of Education Ministers, the Heads of Education Departments Committee, school governing body associations, teacher unions and principal associations – met senior department officials on January 12 and 13 to discuss delaying the reopening, said Mhaule.
“All stakeholders were united in supporting a delay.”
The delay is intended to provide relief to a healthcare system struggling to cope with the high rates of infections, she said.
The way forward
On the matter of private schools, some of which reopened this week, special adviser to Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga, Mzwandile Matthews, said the department met the National Alliance of Independent School Associations and the Independent Schools Association of Southern Africa to “persuade” private schools to delay opening and for those who have opened to follow reopening protocols.
