Dear Editor,
Today the world over there is what many are calling a ‘new norm’. What had been routine is no longer possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Individuals, families, communities and whole countries have been forced to change. Where there have been any success essential ‘business’ is being carried out in new ways – individuals and groups have innovated. The Educational sector is no exception to this.
There are now several examples across the globe of countries and communities which had not sufficiently innovated and returned largely to the way they were. These examples include the impact of the reopening of schools when it seemed the spread of the virus was under control. In some of the wealthiest industrialised countries (Germany, China, and Taiwan) the reopening of schools has been followed by an increased number of COVID-19 cases among the students. These schools were subsequently closed, but the damage was already done. Positive examples in education are seen in places like England, where 1.5 million students were preparing to sit the GCSE, A Levels and AS Levels examinations, but the Government there has cancelled the examinations and devised an alternative means of awarding grades to the students. Right here in Guyana at the University of Guyana we saw a rapid move to online classes midway through the 2nd semester even though many lecturers and students were not fully prepared for this. The system evolved, lessons were quickly learned, adjustments made, and students will soon complete the semester without having returned to the physical campuses.
Considering what we have seen in communities better equipped and financed than Guyana, I am greatly concerned about the decision of the Ministry of Education (MOE) to agree for the sitting of the NGSA and CXC CSEC and CAPE examinations in July and August. I am further concerned by the decision to reopen schools for students preparing to sit these examinations. These decisions are unnecessary and reckless given our realities and I will illustrate this.
Since the first case of COVID-19 was documented in Guyana in early March, many Guyanese have not altered their lifestyles and as a result we have added an average of 1.74 new cases per day. This rate is expected to go up as businesses reopen even before the first wave of the disease has passed. The movement of students to and from school will most likely lead to further increases in rate of infection.
It is worthwhile to note that COVID-19 cases in our neighbouring countries of Brazil and Suriname have recently increased significantly and our borders are porous.
My daughter is one of those students preparing to write the CSEC examinations. One of her classes was called to meet at school to address SBA’s for a few hours. I personally observed students and teacher without masks, no special sanitisation provisions, students sitting close by each other to share resources or just because they had not seen each other in a long while. I can imagine what will occur when a greater number of students return to schools across the country.
I have noted the plans of the MOE for the protection of the students and teachers at schools. I have also observed on occasions that what is announced as planned never materialises. However, even if the MOE puts all measures in place at every school in the few days since the announcement has been made, there are still major issues that will be left unaddressed. What will occur with the transportation of students to and from school given that most students are dependent on public transportation? Even with the limited assistance to some communities promised, many of the less well-off families likely now lack the ability to provide the necessary protection for students. What of supervision of students outside of the school hours? Is it expected that all parents will come to receive their children from school or more likely that many students will have to make their way home? Conditions at schools will likely lead to masks not being used as required. The temperature, humidity and general discomfort with the use of mask will all contribute to this. Our children will be put at great risk, for what cause? What of other measures such as washing hands and sneezing and coughing into elbows: are all students aware of how to do these properly? What of schools in the interior where students travel longer distances? What of those students from interior locations who attend schools in Georgetown and had returned home during the crisis? What of the schools where students come from across the country and live-in?
Even if we assume that all students will be safe from the Corona Virus, we must consider the impact of students being caused to sit examinations during this season. Many will be coming from stressful situations, to which the stress of attending school over the next few weeks is to be added. These students are of age to feel the psychological impacts of this situation. So, if adults are facing anxiety and depression, what should we assume is occurring with children? What might be the impact of wearing masks during examinations given the temperature, humidity and general discomforts, even for the healthiest students?
This situation has revealed and continues to reveal the inadequacies, inequalities and inequities in our systems. I do not assume we can fix them all now, but I do think we can do much better than we are doing. It is my opinion, and that of many others, that there is no need for these examinations to be held as currently scheduled. There are opportunities for greater innovations to be tested and systems changed. This is the perfect time for the MOE to leap forward in the elimination of the inequalities and inequalities in primary and secondary education and to devise an innovative way of transitioning student from primary to secondary. The MOE seems to have failed to see the opportunities in the situation and as a result has taken decisions that will put children and the society as a whole at great risk.
I am now giving thought to withdrawing my daughter from the CSEC exams in 2020. As she may return to school soon, I will be making observations of the situation and documenting the same. I expect that other parents will do the same and take a decision on the need for legal action to bar the MOE from exposing our children and communities to this danger.
Yours faithfully,
C R Bernard
