Schools with 100pc vaccinated staff allowed to reopen on 30th

The Sindh education minister announced on Monday that every school that can ensure that all of their teachers and other members of staff are vaccinated will have the government’s permission to reopen on August 30.

Syed Sardar Ali Shah told a news conference that the provincial government is keeping schools closed for another week because there is a possibility of Covid-19 spread. He said that the education department is looking for a permanent solution, adding that the only option right now is vaccination.

Shah said that those parents who have been vaccinated can send their children to school, stressing that the government wants to ensure the safety of all the students. He said that around 80 per cent of the staff of private educational institutions has been vaccinated. Therefore, after consulting with the chief minister, the education department has decided to allow reopening only those schools where 100 per cent of the staff is vaccinated, he added.

The minister said that the education department is also planning to expedite vaccinations so that they can allow physical classes without any worry and overcome the spread of Covid-19. It is an ethical responsibility of the parents, teachers and school administrators to cooperate with the government, he added.

Earlier, in a meeting with the owners of private schools, he said that the provincial government is serious about addressing their concerns. “We agreed that schools will function in two three-day shifts a week, but school administrators will be bound to provide vaccination reports to the authority concerned.”

Shah said that every educational institution in the province will be reopened after they can ensure that 100 per cent of their staff is vaccinated. He said that CNIC numbers of parents will be recorded to check if they have been vaccinated. “Our main objective is to increase the rate of vaccination among parents so that schools can remain open permanently.”

He claimed that since online schooling has failed all over the world, they have decided to ensure complete vaccination before allowing educational institutions to reopen. Meanwhile, the Directorate of Inspection & Registration of Private Institutions Sindh has issued a circular allowing schools to reopen on Tuesday if their staff is 100 per cent vaccinated.

“It is to inform that the education minister is pleased to allow principals of all privately managed schools in Sindh to call their staff members who have been 100 per cent vaccinated for lesson planning with effect from August 24.”

Demo against govt

Owners of private schools, students, parents and teachers staged a demonstration at the KDA Chowrangi on Monday morning, demanding the reopening of educational institutions.

They were chanting slogans against the Sindh government. The participants included members of the Taleem Bachao Action Committee, the Grand Alliance of Private Schools Sindh, and a number of independent private schools’ associations, such as the Pakistan Private Schools Association and the All Sindh Private Schools and College Association.

Addressing the protesters, Pakistan Private Schools Association General Secretary Abdur Rehman said that due to the continuous closure, the educational institutions had not only suffered academic loss, but they were also facing a financial crisis. Therefore, he said, the government should revise its decision about the closure of schools.

“The government should come up with concert solutions. We are ready to implement Covid-19 SOPs as we have already assured the education minister that all private schools would make sure 100 per cent vaccination of their staffers.”

However, Rehman said, instead of taking precautionary measures, the government was only interested in paralyzing the private sector of education. But the Sindh government forgot that millions of children studying at private educational institutions, he added.

Due to the financial crunch, he said, the owners were compelled to close their schools forever, the parents no longer agreed to pay the fees of children, while the government had no solution to overcome educational disruption.

Murtaza Sherazi of the ASPSCA said the provincial government had no concerns over the issue of reopening schools. The children of politicians would study abroad, but thousands of students had dropped out because of the continued closure of their schools in Pakistan, he said.

Sherazi said that teachers and staffers had lost jobs, the administrators of private schools were unable to pay rents, salaries, and utility bills, nor were they able to meet other expenses. Even the government was well aware of these problems, but the ministers felt happiness about announcing the closure of schools again and again, he lamented. Last week, Chief Ministers Syed Murad Ali Shah had announced that schools would be reopened on August 30 though the Steering Committee of the School Education and Literacy Department had earlier decided that all educational institutes would be reopened on August 23. However, the SLED issued a notification that said all schools would remain close until further orders.

In response, the private schools in a statement said that they would start a 'Save Education Movement' and take to the streets on Monday. However, on Monday, the representatives of the private schools met provincial education minister Sadar Ali Shah in his office. After the meeting, they agreed that those schools whose staffers were 100 percent vaccinated could reopen schools on August 24 for reviewing studies plans. However, they can reopen schools for students on August 30.