Teachers and students attending the Abram Zuil Secondary School (AZSS) in Region Two are complaining about the COVID-19 environment they are forced to work in.
The teachers and students are currently operating under a shift system at Aurora Secondary School since the AZSS is currently under construction.
Stabroek News was told by the teachers that they are forced work in a cramped environment and the COVID-19 guidelines are not adhered to. They said that the situation is very frustrating and to add to their woes, the Department of Education is considering having Grade 9 also turn out to school.
Currently, the students from grades 10 and 11 are forced to sit close to each other due to the lack of space. It was also disclosed that the school environment is not being sanitised as promised by the Department of Education in the Region and some of the water facilities that were built are inoperable. As such students cannot practice hand-washing.
The teachers also said that unvaccinated teachers were locked out by the security guards, but since school re-opened, unvaccinated students as well as parents are being allowed to enter. This is making teachers uncomfortable, they said, while questioning why the rule is being altered.
“They were asking for our cards and those who didn’t have one were turned away and asked to go get vaccinated and now they are letting the unvaccinated children and parents pass the gate, so the teachers have to abide by the law and it’s okay for the other citizens. What kind of unfair and unjust society is this?” a teacher lamented.
Many of them raised the issue with the Headteacher of the school, Jennifer Taylor, who told them when questioned that she is merely abiding by the instructions issued by the Department of Education.
Calls by Stabroek News to the Headmistress’ mo-bile for her comments went unanswered.
“Why should teachers have to be vaccinated before entering the compound and students and parents walk through freely? Unfair! plus they pack us up at a school for 5 days of the week to waste time and expose ourselves during the pandemic. Are these people real? This will have consequences, wait and see, teachers and children have already been infected in the region” another teacher related.
The educators noted that they have raised their concerns with the Guyana Teachers’ Union since the Headteacher of the school is not representing their interests. They believe that the relevant authorities should do a better job as it relates to sanitising and a better system should be in place to allow and ensure that children maintain social and physical distance.
“We were told at a meeting with officers of the Department of Education and other ministry representatives that the desks and so would be sanitised daily before students enter the building but I doubt whether that is happening, since the majority of the sinks built for hand washing are not getting water” another teacher informed. The teachers are hoping that the issue will be resolved immediately so as to avoid children and teachers falling ill.
A senior official of the Department of Education in Region Two told this newspaper that the Minis-try of Education has given a $1 million grant to each secondary school to purchase janitorial supplies. The official said that the onus is on the Headteacher to overlook this expenditure, while the cleaners were told to arrive at the school one hour before classes commence to ensure that the building is sanitised. All cleaners have been trained by the Minis-try of Health’s Public Health Department in Region Two on proper sanitation protocols.
