While President Irfaan Ali has declared that schools will reopen in September, a mere five weeks away, the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) has said it cannot support the move until clear safety protocols are agreed with the union for the protection of both teachers and learners.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event at State House on Thursday, Ali explained that the medium to long term impact of COVID-19 is likely to be felt in the education system and he expressed concern about the number of children who have left the school system since the pandemic forced schools to close their doors.
“We have to get back to school. We have to put measures in place. Teachers have to be vaccinated and [the government] has to create conditions to ensure that we get back to school,” Ali declared.
He went on to explain that efforts are underway to secure vaccination for students ages 12 to 18, while stressing that once Guyana is able to secure doses of Pfizer vaccines these will be administered only to children.
These statements echo a previous commitment by Ali which was repeated by Minister Priya Manickchand during a visit to Linden last week. During that visit Manickchand pleaded with parents to take the vaccine and allow their children to be vaccinated once the Pfizer vaccine is available. “If you don’t take this vaccine, I can’t open schools and if we don’t open schools your children will suffer. All these dreams we had of what they will be when they grow up will be affected. It is one of the realities of the times we’re living. You are their only shield,” she said of adult vaccination.
GTU President Mark Lyte told Sunday Stabroek that a Guyana with herd immunity is the goal but in the absence of that ideal the union remains concerned about teachers and students.
“We are concerned about safety for our teachers and learners. The fact that positive cases and deaths are recorded daily tell us that it is unsafe to open school fully. GTU hopes that the Ministry of Education will work closer with us to ensure all schools are retrofitted with appropriate and adequate wash sinks, washrooms, running water throughout the school day, and janitorial staff. The protocols to be used for reopening of school should be discussed with the union,” Lyte said.
He added that since overcrowding and poor infrastructure was a major concern before the pandemic, the union simply cannot operate on verbal assurances.
Lyte along with other members of the GTU General Council have already staged one protest in front of the Brickdam office of the Minister of Education. During the protest the educators complained that they have been sidelined by the ministry during the pandemic.
“While there may have been a couple of meetings the ministry actually did not consult us on several matters before arriving at decisions. In some ways, the meetings were simply performative because when we met with the ministry we raised concerns about the COVID environment in which teachers are working. We never had a meeting thereafter to say well look, the ministry is now going to move ahead with these measures. Instead, they met with parents and teachers and decided when they would have [the grade six] examinations,” Lyte explained on the day of the protest.
The ministry has disputed this contention, stating that examination date was decided during Zoom meetings at which GTU executives were present in their capacities as Grade Six teachers.
Lyte noted that this explanation doesn’t pass muster since a union member attending a meeting in their capacity as a teacher is not representing GTU.
