GTU urges teachers to take ‘isolation day’ from Monday

The Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) has written to its members urging them to take an ‘isolation day’ from tomorrow in light of the current spike in COVID-19 numbers among teachers and students.

“The Union has taken the position to have an ‘Isolation Day’ from school on Monday, January 10, 2021. This day will be set aside for no formal face-to-face or virtual teaching. The GTU has written the MoE urging them to close all schools for face-to-face engagement for fourteen (14) days, during which teachers will teach virtually. We believe that our teachers can only teach if they are alive, and students can learn when they are healthy. A nation’s health is its wealth. We ask every teacher to yield to this call and stand in solidarity for saving lives,” GTU President Mark Lyte said in the missive to teachers.

He added that the Union has determined more than 108 teachers and 51 students tested positive for the novel coronavirus through its own data gathering mechanisms. The letter stated that several schools were forced to close their doors with 82 of those institutions reporting positive cases for either a teacher, learner, or support staff.

He lambasted the Ministry of Education for the haste in which it reopened those schools without properly sanitizing or putting prevention mechanisms in place. The Union added that it deemed current spike in COVID-19 cases as a danger for teachers, learners, and their families.

“We believe keeping teachers and students out of crowded schools will help to reduce the present spike in COVID positive cases in Guyana while at the same time schools which have ventilation, water, and washroom issues will be fixed by the MoE. Also, we know that any caring government will listen to the voices of its people,” the letter concluded.

The ministry and union have been at odds as it relates to the reopening of schools for face to face learning amidst skyrocketing COVID-19 numbers.