he Ghana Education Service has announced that it is reopening schools today, January 18, 2021, in what critics have questioned its rationality as the second wave of the COVID-19 disease appears to have hit the country.
In a statement signed by the Head of Public Relations at the GES, Cassandra Twum Ampofo, the students were told to arrive at their various schools on Monday and tidy up in preparation for academic work.
“Management of Ghana Education Service (GES) wishes to inform students, teachers, parents and the general public that schools officially reopen on Monday 18th January 2021 for the academic year…Academic work will therefore begin on Tuesday 19th January 2021,” the statement said.
It added that “In the light of that, Management wishes to inform all stakeholders that the annual event dubbed ‘MY FIRST DAY AT SCHOOL’ observed to welcome children entering school for the first time will be held across all districts and regional Education Directorates on Tuesday, 19th January 2021.”
A section of the public has said that the reopening should be postponed until Government has had a handle on the new onslaught of the virus. However, others are of the opinion that school children have already stayed home for too long and that efforts should rather be put into providing the necessary safety in schools.
The GES assures that the appropriate safety measures have been put in place to ensure students are not recklessly exposed to infections.
“Students, parents, teachers and the general public are assured that the schools have been made safe for effective teaching and learning and therefore should not panic,” the GES statement said.