The National Professional Teacher’s Organisation of South Africa (Naptosa) has called on the Department of Basic Education to make sure schools have stringent measures are in place to ensure learners are protected against the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
This comes after President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Monday that the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) is yet to decide on when schools should reopen their doors.
Learners are due back in the classroom on January 27, with private schools expected back next week.
The Executive Director of Naptosa, Basil Manuel, says they do not want disruptions to the 2021 academic calendar.
Manuel says, “We believe that if we have all the correct measures in place, let’s just leave the vaccine out for a second, all the measures need to be in place. Our high school teachers are starting to panic. We think that we will be ready to go back to school provided that the DBE comes to the table and ensures that every province does what they are supposed to do. We are advocating for a less disruptive school year. We don’t want to see any school closures because of the backlogs that we currently have. There were a million children that evaporated into nowhere that we are searching for to get back to school.”
Teacher
A qualified teacher and education activist, Hendrick Makaneta, says he is fearful about the schools re-opening as many of his colleagues have succumbed to COVID-19.
In the video below, Makaneta says he started tutoring his learners via WhatsApp and Zoom in a bid to curb the pandemic:
Below is the School calendar:
