– schools set to reopen for face-to-face classes on January 3
Senior Officers of the Ministry of Education led by the Chief Education Officer, Dr Marcel Hutson, met virtually with the President of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU), Mark Lyte, and other members to discuss pertinent matters related to the education system.
Students in classes
Some of the matters discussed included the National Grade Six Assessment 2022, CXC examinations 2022, TVET Education, developments in literacy, teacher appraisal, the consolidated curriculum, hinterland education, and the new role of the Inspectorate Unit.
Both the Ministry and the GTU committed to continuing working closely in the new year to improve the education system in the best interest of all stakeholders, especially pupils and teachers.
In fact, the Education Ministry stated that pupils of Grade Six and secondary school students are expected to return to face-to-face learning on January 3, 2022, except those in Grade Seven (Form 1).
The secondary school students, except those in Form One, will be required to attend face-to-face classes every day. This caters to students who are eligible to take the Pfizer vaccine which are being administered to adolescents.
Some students in Form One, however, cannot receive these vaccines and as such, they will not return to full face-to-face classes just yet. Classes for Form One students will begin on January 10.
This was stated in a released schedule by the Ministry which further stated that physical classes for Grades One to Five pupils will be done on a rotation basis while those in Grade Six will attend classes every day.
Arrangements will be made to accommodate the children to facilitate the COVID-19 guideline of social distancing.
These Grade Six children are scheduled to sit the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA), Guyana’s secondary school entrance examination, later in the year.
The Ministry stated that if parents choose not to send their child to school, they must ensure that their child/children are meaningfully engaged at home. Meanwhile, the Ministry urged that those who are expected to return to school from Monday adhere to the guidelines set out by the Health Ministry.
Further, for nursery school children, classes will be held on a rotational basis.
