Teacher Unions in the country have called on the government to still close schools even if the ban on public gatherings is lifted
The unions in a letter addressed to the Director-General of the Ghana Education Service, Prof Kwasi Opoku-Amankwa, said they “would not ascribe to the re-opening of schools, should the President of the Republic decide not to extend the 31st May 2020 deadline and order the re-opening of the schools.”
The joint letter stating these concerns was written and signed by the Teachers and Education Workers Union, the Ghana National Association of Teachers, National Association of Graduate Teachers, and the Coalition of Concerned Teachers Ghana.
“The spread of the virus in Ghana is still very exponential, and given the fact that our [Ghanaian] schools could still be incubation centres of the pandemic, and given the unlimited social interactions and movements which take place there,” they advised the government to hold onto the decision to reopen schools.
They revealed that measures to curb the spread of the virus would be almost impossible to adhere to in Ghana’s schools.
“The class sizes and dormitory population are still large, thus not making the observation of social distancing possible.”
The unions further clarified that “considering the age and exuberance of our students one cannot be sure that they [students] will adhere strictly to the COVID-19 protocol hence the fear that the disease may spread in the schools.”
Among the other challenges that the union stated that need to be dealt with before reopening include the non-availability of potable water, face/nose masks, alcohol-based sanitisers and soaps to help teachers and students adhere to prescribed protocols.