One of the sectors hampered since the COVID-19 pandemic started in December 2019 is education and to a large extent, children have been affected especially as they have been forced to stay at home for more than nine months.
In the process, lots of measures were put in place including virtual learning. Some of the state governments used the opportunity to explore various avenues in digital learning and it paid off, despite hitches here and there.
Now that the Federal Government of Nigeria has directed that both public and private schools open for the academic session on January 18, 2021, so that children can continue their normal education; the big question is, should the children continue to stay at home? Is there a way to manage the pandemic whilst the children resume their normal education? Can school teachers and counsellors give their best in ensuring the safety of the children in school? Will the COVID-19 protocols be strictly adhered to by all stakeholders? Who will take the responsibility should anything go wrong, Government, Parents or School administrators?
Against this background, WO investigated the reopening of schools in some parts of the country.
Some of the people who spoke are of the opinion that there is no alternative to reopening of schools. According to them, the ills involved in shutting down schools are devastating compared to the merits.
Some of them revealed some school teenagers have been impregnated as a result of the lockdown, while some of the boys are into drugs and other vices in the community.
Every school should have medical teams —Eugenia Okafor, a teacher at the Government Junior School, Abuja.
In my opinion, schools reopening has no option as far as I am concerned. For how long are we going to keep our children at home? I am not health personnel but I must tell you that this virus we are talking about is a senior brother of malaria, that is the way I look at it.
Let’s ask ourselves this question, how many hospitals in this country have good equipment and for how long are Nigerians going to wait for the Federal Government to put even 10% of hospitals in order?