The theme allocated by the Western Cape government for this year is appropriately: “Teachers: leading in a crisis, re-imagining the future”. The year 2020 has been an incredibly challenging year for the education system, and our teachers have had to change the way they approach teaching completely.
“We saw some incredible examples of ingenuity and perseverance during lockdown, as teachers turned to everyday apps and programmes to ensure learning continued during the long school closure,” said Western Cape minister, Debbie Schäfer.
She said once schools re-opened the school day operated very differently, incorporating daily screening procedures, continuous safety protocols and the rotation of grades.
“We are proud of the way so many of our teachers stepped up and set the example for our learners. The attitude of our teachers and other staff during the phasing-in process made all the difference in calming our learners’ nerves and helping them adjust to the ‘new normal’ of attending school during the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Schäfer said the department is aware of the negative impacts on learners, in terms of their education, health and safety as well as their future circumstances.
“I would like personally to thank and pay tribute to all those teachers who set aside their own understandable fears and put the interests of our learners first as we re-opened schools in the safest way possible. These teachers have demonstrated what it means for teaching to be a calling rather than just a job.”
She expressed the department’s deep sadness over the loss of 31 teachers to Covid-19 since the lockdown began.
“We think of them especially today, along with the other teachers and staff who have passed away this year, and offer our sincere condolences to their families, colleagues and schools.”
Having launched the #CommitToFinish campaign to encourage Grade 12 learners to finish their matric year, we know our matric teachers need encouragement too. Thank you for the work you have done this year to prepare our matrics, and we wish you and your classes the very best for the exams.
