Schools reopen September 6

SCHOOLS IN GUYANA WILL BE REOPENED ON SEPTEMBER 6 for in-class learning
according to the Ministry of Education.
The ministry was forced to close schools last year following the outbreak of the highly
contagious and deadly COVID-19 which has so far killed 4.4M persons worldwide and 594 in
Guyana. Since then, children have been receiving instruction online, but the national consensus
is that this strategy is not as effective as students physically sitting in a classroom with their
teachers.
In a statement, the ministry said there has been a groundswell among parents for a return to in-
person learning for children to maximise the benefits of learning.
Many parents too cannot afford an individual cellular phone, tablet or computer or other devices
for their children to participate in the online classroom instructions. As a consequence, too many
students have “dropped out of school”.
“We have embarked on an ambitious exercise to find these students and bring them back into the
formal education system. These outcomes as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic are highly
undesirable and any circumstance or situation that promotes this must be addressed,” the
Ministry said in a press release.
Since schools were closed, the ministry pursued several novel teaching/learning initiatives,
including production of recorded lessons done by local educators geared to help students remain
engaged in learning while still at home. The videos were also uploaded to the Guyana Learning
Channel (GLC) YouTube channel for online streaming.
“We are very proud of what we were able to do under the prevailing circumstances and
challenges. The Ministry of Education printed thousands of worksheets for each grade which
corresponded with the curriculum and what each child should have been learning if they were in
the classroom,” the release said.

“We are cognisant that some schools will have different challenges and needs regarding a
reopening, and as such, individualised plans tailored for each school will be implemented to
ensure the safety of our teachers, students and support staff,” the Ministry assured.
All COVID-19 protocols will still be followed by schools including physical distancing, regular
sanitising and wearing face masks by students and teachers.
In preparation for the anticipated reopening, students from 12 years and over will be vaccinated
after their parents sign the consent form made available recently.
“Today (yesterday), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the United States of America
gave full approval for the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine. In May of this year, the FDA had expanded
the emergency use authorization for the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine to children 12 years and over,”
the Ministry said.
Parents overwhelmingly support their children taking the jab, the ministry said.
“We commend them for making this decision and urge other parents to consider the benefits,”
the ministry said in the press release.
“Teachers were also urged today in a separate press statement to take one of the available
vaccines because how schools reopen will depend on how the adult population of the school
respond to being vaccinated,” the ministry reiterated.
“Parents who choose not to send their child to school on the days they are scheduled to
attend will be enjoined with the responsibility of ensuring that child is continuously
engaged at home and, to this end, will be able to access all of the Ministry’s materials on
our website,” the statement explained.