Haynes pleased with return to classrooms but maintains: Health must be priority

Shadow Minister of Education and Tabaquite MP Anita Haynes says she is pleased that students will be allowed to return to in-person classes, but hopes proper protocols are in place to ensure the safety of staff and students.

During a media conference on Wednesday afternoon Minister of Education Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly announced that students in forms four, five and six will be allowed to return to school whether they have been vaccinated or not.

Contacted for comment, Haynes said she understood the challenges faced by students in distance learning and hoped proper measures would be introduced at schools to protect students.

She added that restrictions to gatherings and activities should not be considered permanent solutions and hoped enough planning went into the reopening.

"I'm hoping that the time the Ministry (of Education) has spent flip-flopping on this issue, that they've used it wisely and are now fully prepared to ensure children are able to be educated safely.

"That being said, we acknowledge it would have been exceedingly difficult (for) the students and the teachers to maintain a blended system where you had some people online and others in class, and that was a kind of unworkable option...given the fact we have a number of students who are still without devices, we understand the move to in-person classes.

"But the ministry must ensure the buck stops with them and that students are able to do so safely and ensure the safety of both students and teachers are the highest priorities."

Haynes said she hoped the ministry did its due diligence in consulting with different stakeholder groups to ensure a smooth reopening of classes and would discuss the issue with teachers and principals from schools in her constituency for their feedback.