section 4 /
opinion
The longterm impact of the pandemic on education The Covid-19 pandemic has been extraordinarily disruptive to schooling in South Africa, as in most parts of the world. A significant amount of teaching time has been lost. Schools were initially closed on the 18th of March 2020, with a phased re-opening where the first grades (7 and 12) returned on the 8th of June 2020 and the last grades (5 and 8) returned on the 31st of August. Over and above a further school closure during the third wave in 2021, even when schools were officially open, most schools have been implementing some sort of rotational timetabling to allow for social distancing among learners.
Nompumelelo Mohohlwane Deputy Director: Research Coordination, Monitoring and Evaluation at the Department of Basic Education
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