Stakeholders petition Govt over schools opening

• Education crisis spills into 2021
• ARTUZ calls for rewriting of exams
• ‘Postpone re-opening’

By Kundai Marunya

As Covid-19 claims more lives while numbers of new infections continue to surge, stakeholders in the education sector have called on Government to postpone schools opening.
This follows a high number of recorded Covid-19 cases in schools in the last month with Government confirming over 500 infections.
Infected students and teachers were isolated with those in exam writing classes being separated from the rest of the students.
Limited facilities, lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) and lack of adequate resources in the wake of a new viral strain and a surge in infections have left stakeholders worried of a more dangerous situation when schools open on January 4.
Both teachers’ unions and parents are pleading with Government to take a cautious approach in safeguarding the health of students and teachers alike.
“During the holidays, students could have interacted with various friends or relatives during family gatherings.
“Some of the people they were in constant interaction with could have easily been infected with Covid-19 which exposes other students to a higher risk of infection when schools open,” said Sheila Munhambara, a parent to a student at Chinhoyi High, one of the schools that recorded a high number of infections.
“I’m afraid for my child, but as it stands I do not know what to do as Government is adamant on schools opening next week.”
In an earlier interview with Nhau, Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) secretary-general Raymond Majongwe said opening schools on January 4 was irresponsible.
“We have at least 40 percent of people coming from neighboring countries who will sneak into the country through our various porous points of entry. Some may be carrying the Covid-19 virus,” said Majongwe.
“They will get into the country without being tested, interact with various students and teachers who could be relatives, neighbours or friends thus exposing them to dangers of infection.
“Our possibly infected students and staff will return to school posing a danger of a great wave of new infections. To say schools will open on January 4 is irresponsible, we will be pressing a disaster button. Saying all students – ECDs included, will return to school in January is just illogical.”
Hopes for schools to open on a later date saw social media awash with false reports that Government had decided on a phased approach which would see only exam classes opening in January.
Government has, however, reaffirmed its position on January 4 opening.
“All classes, ECD to Grade 7, Form 2 to Form 4 and Form 6 will open on January 4 while Form Ones will open on 9 February,” said Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education director of communication and advocacy Taungana Ndoro.
“Form Ones are opening a bit later because the Grade 7 results are not yet out. As for the Form 5s, we are still waiting for confirmation on when their Ordinary Level results will be released.”
When schools reopened on September 28, having closed after the country reported its first cases of Covid-19 in March, Government initiated a phased approach which reduced pressure on both teachers and learning facilities.
The admittance of other classes as all phases were now in school, later in the term, saw a spike in infections as most schools barely had enough facilities to cater for all students even without following the Covid-19 guidelines.
This led to schools splitting classes into small groups, with some students only attending school for less than 10 days in the last term.
“The incapacitation crisis, Covid-19 crisis and Cyclone Chalane crisis will make it impossible for schools to efficiently open doors for learning,” said Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe president Obert Masaraure.
Cyclone Chalane is expected to hit the eastern and southern parts of Zimbabwe later this week. It is likely to leave a trail of destruction, destroying homes, schools and other infrastructure.
“The education crisis of 2020 will definitely spill into 2021 as no fundamental interventions were instituted during the brief holiday,” said Masaraure.
“ARTUZ will intensify the #SaveOurEducationZW campaign in a bid to unite education stakeholders to force Government to account on the front of delivering inclusive quality education.”

#SaveOurEducationZW was launched by ARTUZ on December 11. The campaign is focused on “mourning the collapse and demise of our education system. It was also meant to plant trees as symbol of a fight to resuscitate a sustainable education system”.

Over 1 600 protestors comprising ARTUZ members, teachers not affiliated to ARTUZ and parents participated in the #SaveOurEducationZW campaign in various districts countrywide.
“Teachers and parents submitted over 46 petitions to different education districts demanding that the ongoing apartheid examinations must be stopped. Learners from poor backgrounds are being forced to write examinations they never prepared for. Exams must be re-written in 2021 after adequate preparations,” reads a statement on ARTUZ website.
“Schools should be closed until Covid-19 safety measures have been instituted. Schools are failing to adhere to Covid-19 regulations because of underfunding. The blind mass transmission of the coronavirus in schools must be stopped!
“Teacher salaries should be restored to US$520. The incapacitation crisis remains unresolved. Government should urgently restore the value of teacher salaries so that our teachers fully return to duty.” Nhau/Indaba