Back to school
Some CT parents nervous, yet relieved to see kids return to school
Eyewitnesses News finds out how COVID-19 has affected the first day of the 2021 academic year.
The Education Department received over 200,000 applications through its online system.
Teachers around the country were grieving the loss of colleagues while anxiously preparing for the return of pupils amid the second wave of COVID-19.
Teachers have been hit hard by the pandemic, with unions saying that over 1,300 of their members succumbed to the virus since last year.
More than 1,600 teachers have died after contracting the virus since the pandemic hit our shores - that's more than double the number of health care workers and police officers combined.
Basic Education Department director general Mathanzima Mweli said they must make a decision on how children will return to school closer to the time.
Five retreat residents have helped 150 needy school children with stationery and other school supplies.
Dr Jack & Curtis
Social media expert Emma Sadleir said one innocent picture could expose confidential information about your children.
She says pupil enrolment in the province has been growing at an average of 18,000 learners per year which is making provisioning difficult.
Parents whose children are yet to be placed in schools across Gauteng are pleading with Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi to bring back the manual registration system. Parents who stood in long queues on Wednesday said their children were now bearing the burden of a failing system. #BackToSchool #PanyazaLesufi #Education
South African schools opened for the academic year on 15 January 2020. At this school, there were more happy faces than the usual tears. #BackToSchool #Education #SouthAfrica
A jovial mood prevailed at Noordgesig Primary where parents, pupils and community members attended the first day of attendance at the new school. #BackToSchool #Education #NoodgesigPrimary
While thousands of learners started and returned to school on Wednesday, there were still pupils who had not been placed.
Hundreds of thousands of pupils are heading to classrooms across South Africa for the first day of the 2020 school year.
One parent said the online application process had made life difficult and that the Gauteng Department of Education seemed to have tried to fix a system that was not broken.
Principal Aleem Abrahams, his teachers and parents have had enough of violence, substance abuse and poor school infrastructure.
The Education Department had been struggling to place some pupils due to late registration, outstanding documents and other issues.
More than 1.1 million learners start or return to schools in the province on Wednesday.