Dr Kelvin Yii
KUCHING (Apr 19): Bandar Kuching MP Dr Kelvin Yii is calling on both the Ministry of Education (MoE) and Ministry of Health (MoH) to come up with a comprehensive education blueprint in an effort to protect students and teachers from Covid-19.
In a statement yesterday, he asserted that this blueprint should include clear and specific parameters and considerations to decide the opening and closing of schools in case of an outbreak or a surge of cases in an area.
He also proposed that the MoE close all schools in red and orange zones in Sarawak for at least two weeks to help break the spread of infection in the schools.
“By going on with the current system and classes, it is not effective as the students and teachers are distracted by the rising cases as well as the disruption in their learning momentum in school,” he pointed out.
Aside from that, Dr Yii also suggested that during the school closure period the ministry must come up with a ‘hybrid system’ or ‘rotating system’ for schools in high-risk areas where classes are rotated on different days, thus reducing the number of students in school.
He added that those who can follow home-based learning should be allowed to do so at home and those who cannot be allowed to come to school.
“The ministry must then train and equip all teachers to help adapt to such a system during this period and not let them to ‘figure things out’ on their own.
“This will prepare the teachers as schools reopen again and this system can be in place for schools in high-risk areas and can be reverted to normal system once the situation recovers,” he said.
He also said the ministry must be transparent on crucial information on Covid-19 outbreaks in schools so that parents can make an informed choice on what is best for their children in such situation.
With clear and specific parameter, he added, parents can then evaluate whether to send their children to school, or even for the district education office to make decisions when to open or close schools.
“Such decision must be based on facts and data and not any political consideration. Vaccination for teachers must be prioritised in Phase 2 which starts tomorrow.
“That is why I urge the Ministry of Education to be pro-active and come up with a comprehensive plan before more and more of our students and teachers suffer even more. We cannot waste this time again like we wasted the full year without coming out with a comprehensive system.
“Schools cannot just simply open and close based on daily numbers, and this cannot go on forever especially as many experts are expecting Covid-19 to be endemic. That is why a clear system must be in place for any eventualities,” he asserted.
Dr Yii pointed out that policies that were unclear, not specific and reactive by the ministry had clearly failed both the students and teachers in protecting them from Covid-19.
He also said there must be properly planned procedures and guidelines for the opening and running of schools to ensure that students do not fall behind in their studies.
He added that currently with the spike of cases in Sarawak and even around the country, parents and even teachers are worried about their safety and the safety of the children in school.
It was reported that up to 186 schools nationwide and about 112 schools in Sarawak had seen infections since reopening under the instructions of the Ministry of Education, he said.
“I fully understand that the decision to open schools is a tough one as there are many factors to consider, especially balancing the need to protect the health of our children and also to make sure they are not left out from their studies especially among the poorer students and those living in rural areas.
“However, what is concerning is that even after more than a year of being in the pandemic, the Ministry of Education doesn’t seem to have a comprehensive plan on how to address this issue nor help equip the teachers to adapt to such a situation. What it seems is that the ministry has been reactive in their policies, which is shown by the constant ‘flip-flopping’ and sudden last minute decisions, leaving parents more concerned and many confused.
“As a result, not only are our students, teachers and staff are getting infected by the virus, but there is a whole generation of students that are so left behind in terms of their studies and are finding it hard to catch up and cope, especially the poor that have difficulties in following the home-based learning programme,” he said.