No extension of school term despite late start

The Ministry of Education has declared that there will not be an extension in the number of school days for this Christmas term, despite the late start due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Kasan Troupe, acting Chief Education Officer, confirmed that position on Tuesday night, saying the focus for the remainder of the term will be to work out all the issues related to the new methods of teaching and implementing diagnostic tests.

Dr. Troupe made the disclosure in response to questions raised during the RJRGLEANER virtual town hall meeting.

The issue raised was that students have lost out several weeks of lessons in September, and whether an extension of the number of days in the term would be necessary.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been causing disruptions in the education sector since March. It pushed back the start date for the new academic year, and forced the implementation of several measures to deliver lessons in a way to minimise the risk of transmission of the virus.