Six months should have been enough to prepare
The COVID-19 pandemic has been with us for over six months now, and the world has had to adjust to this new reality.
Businesses, workplaces, shops, bars, restaurants and other establishments had to shift to a new way of doing things. It was not easy, but new systems were put in place and they are, for the most part, working well.
For some reason, however, schools are a different story.
Just yesterday, it was announced that the opening of state and church schools has been delayed by another week, and students returning to class on staggered days. This means that, for some of these students, the scholastic year is actually being delayed by two weeks.
Confusion still reigns. Besides the fact that there are different protocols and options for state, private and church schools, the situation is still fluid and things keep changing week after week. The scholastic year is upon us, yet there are thousands of questions to be answered.
One cannot but ask why schools, particularly state institutions, have taken so long to come up with solutions, especially when one considers that the COVID-19 situation did not come about overnight. Were six months not enough to agree on a plan and set it in motion?
One could also ask why private schools were more efficient in this regard? Why are state schools lagging so far behind?
We are well aware that meetings have been taking place for months between the education department and the other stakeholders, but it seems that a lot of time was wasted and, at this delicate juncture, schools are still not fully prepared to reopen.
We also understand that the unions are trying to protect their members, but we cannot but feel that there is a lot of unnecessary bickering. Many workers started working from home back in March, when the pandemic was still not fully understood. Yet, when things became clearer and measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19 were put in place, many of these same workers returned to work. So what is different with teachers and students?
Why are the unions and some parents adopting this attitude, especially when they have been given the choice of opting for virtual learning for their children?
These issues should have been tackled much earlier on, during the summer months. It is now too late in the day to start debating protocols again.
When it comes to the authorities, we feel that communication is lacking. A long press conference was held last month, during which a lot of measures were announced. This should have been followed up by more press conferences to go into more detail about the measures individually.
Another press conference is needed more than ever, now that new arrangements have been announced regarding the reopening of schools.
Furthermore, this newsroom has been receiving countless calls from concerned parents and, unfortunately, we do not always have the answers. It would not have been a bad idea to hold question and answer sessions for parents where they can address their concerns and put their questions directly to the education authorities.