Government not ready to re-open schools

The government will not re-open schools in September as speculated by a section of Kenyans on social media.
Education CS Prof. George Magoha while inspecting Kitale National polytechnic Monday said that his Ministry is still waiting for further advice from the Ministry of Health on the behavior of the coronavirus to make concrete decisions on re-opening.
However, he said that TVET institutions might open their doors to examination classes in September and the on-going inspection in the middle learning colleges is check their preparedness.
He allayed fears that teachers not registering for community learning will be punished through denial of salaries adding that the exercise is voluntarily.
Prof. Magoha said that teachers with clinical problems will not be allowed to participate in community learning programme.
“Community learning was meant to cater for pupils and students not attending online classes,” he said.
According to Prof. Mogoha, community learning will not take place in schools, but in the community where pupils and teachers stay in the same locality.
“We were particularly concerned about pupils and students living in slums that cannot access even a radio in their home,” he said.
Prof. Mogoha said that community teaching will not syllabus based and rubbished those against the exercise as malicious people with little interest for the Kenyan child.
He said that the government is still studying the trend of coronavirus, adding that it will not rush to endanger the lives of the Kenyan child through re-opening of schools.
He blamed World Health organization for double standards saying that on one hand the organization is asking countries to follow protocols and on the other hand it is asking African counties to open schools.
On inspection of TVET institutions, he said that the exercise is at 50% and asked managers of the institution to put in place measurable improvements recommended to them.
He said that all teacher training institutions will from May next year teach teachers purely on curriculum-based competency.
By Pauline Ikanda