‘If pandemic escalates, school would have to be closed again’

Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani warned on Tuesday that schools would have to be closed for a third time in case the pandemic escalated again.

The word of warning came from the provincial minister during a press conference, where he stressed the need for the implementation of pandemic-related standard operating procedures (SOPs) a day after the reopening of schools.

"Educational institutions opened across the province on February 1, and the health department has clearly outlined the SOPs [for them]," the minister said, adding that the SOPs applied to all, school administrations, parents and students and the only way to ensure that the contagion was kept at bay at educational institutions was to follow the SOPs.

Then, warning that schools would have to be closed again if the pandemic escalated, Ghani acknowledged that it would be difficult and particularly urged parents to play their role in curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

"Parent should try to pick and drop their children at schools themselves instead of opting for school vans and public transport, ensure that their children used face masks and hand sanitisers and visit their children's school to ensure that the SOPs were being followed there," said Ghani.

Turning his attention to revised exam pattern for the academic year 2021-22, Ghani announced that the provincial government would be preparing a model paper to clear the confusion of parents and students. He further stated that schools should ensure the completion of 60 per cent syllabus before the date of exams decided by the education department's steering committee.

Read: Sindh changes exam duration, procedure for students amid pandemic

According to Ghani, so far, 13,966 samples have been collected for coronavirus from colleges in Sindh. Of them, 12,121 have tested negative, 265 positive and the results of 1,580 are awaited.

Similarly, the provincial minister said, of 8,457 samples collected from the province's schools thus far, 546 have tested positive, 11,845 negative and the results of 2,642 are yet to be released.

He said the provincial government was trying to increase the span of Covid-19 testing in educational institutions.

Ghost schools

With regards to ghost schools, Ghani maintained that all schools in Dadu and elsewhere in the province had been established before 2008 by "those who are the supporters of elements blaming [the current provincial government]."

He said all schools in the province had been located on Google map and those that lacked proper buildings, teachers and students, were being removed from the list of official schools.

Ghani said 3,000 such schools had been identified and removed from the official list so far.

Reacting to the opposition leader in the Sindh Assembly Haleem Adil Sheikh's remarks, who had said Sindh's schools were in derelict condition, Ghani remarked, "The opposition leader has been out of school, but it is good that he wants to go to school now."

Published in The Express Tribune, February 3^rd, 2021.