Region One schools reopen with COVID-19 protocols in place

─REdO says

Education officials in the North West District have said all COVID-19 preventative measures are in place to ensure the safety of students and school personnel as schools reopen nationwide for the Easter term.

In a telephone interview with DPI today, Mr. Nigel Richards, Regional Education Officer (REdO) in Barima-Waini (Region One), said checks are being made continuously to ensure safety at schools.

At the time of the assessments, the REdO was in the company of Mr. Marti DeSouza, who is performing the duties of Deputy Chief Education Officer for Amerindian and Hinterland Education Development.

“All schools opened that were set to be reopened [for] Grades Ten and Eleven. They have all their protocols in place.

Students of North West Secondary School listen as Deputy Chief Education Officer (DCEO) for Amerindian and Hinterland Education Development (AHED), Mr. Marti DeSouza (first left, standing) addresses them. Deputy Education Officer (DEO) for Region One, Mr. Nigel Richards is also pictured, first right, standing.

They have their hand washing stands, they are testing temperature when they come in and so on, the normal [social] distancing and the normal protocols that were there last term [are being observed],” he said.

Mr. Richards also said during checks at schools, both he and Mr. DeSouza engage students on the importance of adhering to the preventative measures.

School restarted for face-to-face interaction for senior students on November 9, 2020, following a more than six-month closure due to Covid.

Meanwhile, the lower levels remained engaged through instruction via radio and television, through social media platforms and with the use of printed worksheets.  This term, the Ministry is again employing these same methods of engagement for the various levels.

The initial decision to restart in-person learning was taken to ensure that students set to write the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate, and the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination, as well as those at technical institutions are efficiently engaged for the 2021 exams.