Picture: North West MEC for Education, Wendy Matsemela
By REGINALD KANYANE
North West Premier, Prof Job Mokgoro alongside MEC for Education, Wendy Matsemela is expected to visit three schools in Taung on Monday. Over 1500 schools across the North West are expected to welcome back 65 000 Grade 7 and 37 000 Grade 12 learners respectively.
Matsemela said the aim of the visit is scheduled to monitor the re-opening of schools in three schools around the Greater Taung region amidst a long break to the novel Coronarivus pandemic.
“We will visit Reivilo High School in Reivilo at 8am and this will be followed by a visit to Lokgabeng Primary School in Mokasa village before heading to Molale Primary School in Motlapaneng village. The visit will include monitoring availability of COVID-19 PPEs to schools which is inclusive of infrared thermometers, cloth masks and face shields as well as the delivery of sanitizers, and hand soaps.
“Prior to the re-opening, schools received deep cleaning by various stakeholders and volunteer to ensure a hygienic environment for teaching and learning. We have use R380 million for the PPEs including the sanitizers, hand wash soaps, disinfectants, boards including face shields and face masks,” she said.
Matsemela added that they are expecting 103 217 learners in various schools this week combined with all 27 000 teachers they are having across the province. She said this includes food handlers, AAs, and the GAs.
“We have been working together with the Department of Health and believe that the department has unfolded a program that they know better than us. We will ensure that any person who is supposed to be at our schools is not compromised. As the department, we will also try to move in tantamount to what the president of the Republic of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa is saying by saving lives at all cost,” said Matsemela.
She said the issue of appointment of Marebantwa as testing and screening volunteers are affectionately known across the province was the prerogative of the School Governing Bodies (SGBs) at schools. Matsemela also re-iterated that her department will take Grade 12s into camps.
“We have already budgeted for camps in terms of all semesters. The department has budgeted for summer, winter, and spring camps. So, we are going to take all Grade 12s given that there is a budget for them to put them in separate camps, which we will be in compliance with alert lockdown regulations going forward.
“We will take them there since we have a number of issues to look upon. For instance, the Grade 12s curriculum is not going to be trimmed. Therefore, the Grade 12s across the Republic of South Africa including the North West province must do the entire curriculum. Fortunately, the curriculum for Grade R-11s will be trimmed,” she said.
Matsemela said if SGBs and teachers from various schools refuse to adhere to the camps for Grade 12s, they will embark on school-based camps.
The Guardian 