Some parents opt for home schooling
New normal begins for thousands of learners across country
AS THOUSANDS of learners across the country headed back to school yesterday, some parents opted for home schooling instead.
Yandiswa Xhakaza, chief executive for Nali’ibali’s “reading for enjoyment” campaign, said some parents were comfortable with that decision.
“Whatever their decision, we need to respect the right of parents to choose in this situation. Those who will not be sending their children back to school will have to commit to teaching their children. In order to make it work, you would ideally need a smart device, stable internet access, a printer, and time.
“Try to negotiate working hours with your employer. You could start your day at 10am to enable teaching from 7.30am or 8am.
“I strongly recommend mornings for teaching and learning, and not afternoons or evenings. Once these are in place, parents need to be structured in terms of what they will teach and they need to have a very good understanding of the outcomes for the specific term, per subject,” Xhakaza said.
Bronagh Hammond, spokesperson for the Western Cape Education Department, said they were still awaiting final directions with regard to learners that would not be returning to school as a result of Covid-19.
“We have communicated to schools the process involved should a learner have an existing comorbidity.
“Parents of learners with a severe comorbidity have the option of keeping their child at home as a concession and overseeing his/her learning at home for the next while until the pandemic recedes,” said Hammond.
“If they wish to make use of this concession, they will have to provide the necessary signed confirmation and medical report.
“They would then be responsible for overseeing the daily learning of their children at home.”
She said that from 2015 to this year, they had received 500 applications for home schooling.
Chirani Meyer, of Educating from Home SA, said they had seen a significant increase in the number of parents joining their group and inquiring about educating children from home.
“The main concern seems to be that parents feel it won’t be safe for their children to return to school at this stage, due to Covid-19. Other parents have lost their jobs and cannot afford the school fees.”
Meyer said many parents have indicated that they would feel more comfortable sending their children back to school at a later stage.
“A major concern for parents that are choosing to home-school their children is, will the learners have a place in the schools when they return and if they will be held back or repeat the grade they are in?” Meyer said.