Private schools in Sindh reject two-week ‘academic-pause’ policy

The Private Schools Association of Sindh has rejected, on Sunday, the government’s order to pause academic activities in educational institutions for two weeks in wake of the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

The association in its statement said that at the end of the academic year, schools cannot be shut for two weeks or more. “Schools should be kept open until the imposition of complete lockdown.”

Already 20 million children did not return to schools after the closure of educational institutions due to the outbreak of the pandemic. The Private Schools Association has urged the government to adopt a smart lockdown policy, rather than shutting down the schools.

It was further said that the closure of schools has already resulted in the unemployment of several teachers.

Earlier in the day, Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani had announced that all private and government schools across Sindh will close for two weeks from April 6.

“In light of the Covid-19 situation, we have decided to suspend physical classes for grades one to eight at all government and private schools across the province for fifteen days from April 6,” he had tweeted.

However, he added, classes can continue via other modes of study including online.