Africa-Press – Uganda. Schools are about to close at the end of the first school term after a long period of lockdown, one of the longest worldwide. At the end of last year and at the start of the school term, there were many concerns, regarding financial ability of schools to reopen, prevention of spread of Covid-19 and even pupil and student wellbeing, after two years out of school.
The challenges were many, including a shortage of teachers in some schools, low numbers of enrolment and economic difficulties facing parents and guardians after the disruption caused by the pandemic, resulting in job loss and reduction in incomes or career switches for some.
The school term, when it began, has not been without incident. Many cases of cough and flu were reported and this was quite disruptive, not to mention, worrying, for school heads and parents.
After much testing, Covid-19 infection was ruled out in most cases. In spite of the struggles and uncertainties, the first school term is drawing to a close. With the term closure, we should have a moment of reflection to check the health of our schools going forward.
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Several things are happening in schools, including the integration of an adjusted curriculum, the race to cover back material and bring students up to the required levels by the time of assessment and bridge lingering financial gaps, among others. This ought to be a time of reflection for the policymakers and leaders in the education sector.
While schools might be functioning, how are they managing to run their operations and deliver the education package. In some cases, schools have adjusted learning schedules in order to catch up with the ground they need to cover.
The effect of these changes on pupils, students and teachers should be under observation and inspection. School enrollment is another area that requires monitoring to record any changes that may have occurred, for better or worse. With high levels of teenage pregnancy recorded during the Covid-19 lockdown, follow up studies are necessary to check how many of these children were able to return to school and the overall effect on enrollment.
While education may appear to be back on track, it is important to keep track of the health and sanitation levels in schools, social distancing, enrollment levels and student welfare and study patterns among other items.
Following a long period of hardship for schools, teachers and students, it is of importance to do regular assessment to determine how the education sector is performing in the wake of the pandemic.
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