Fayemi announces new date for schools resumption in Ekiti, ban school buses
He explained that pupils in Primary 6, and students in JSS 3 as well as those in SSS 3 are to resume on the third of August.
Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, on Wednesday, July 5 has announced the new date for schools resumption in the state, but banned the use of school buses by private schools to convey students to their various schools.
The governor said the schools will reopen on August 3 for pupils and students in graduating classes after the Southwest States agreed on Wednesday to reopen schools for SS3 students to participate in the West African School Certificate Examination (WASCE) next month.
The State Commissioner for Education, Mr. Foluso Daramola who made this known to newsmen in Ado-Ekiti, said Commissioners for Education in the South West held virtual meeting where each state was told to plan for schools resumption.
He explained that pupils in Primary 6, and students in JSS 3 as well as those in SSS 3 are to resume on the third of August.
He advised parents and guardians to provide three face masks for their children and wards while government would make available all protective materials needed to fight COVID- 19 by the public schools.
Mr. Daramola stated that any private school with two gates must close one to control movement in and out of the school, adding that authorities of private primary and secondary schools should make available all materials required to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the state.
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He however announced that government had banned the use of school buses by private schools to convey students to their various schools.
The Commissioner said the step was part of the government’s effort to check the spread of Coronavirus in the state.
Meanwhile, the Newsflash247 had earlier reported that the Southwest States on Wednesday agreed to reopen schools for SS3 students to participate in the West African School Certificate Examination (WASCE) next month.
The six States from the region are Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Ondo, Osun and Ekiti.
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Their decision is contrary to the position of most of the 19 northern states, which supported the Federal Government’s decision to suspend school reopening for SS3 students due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Federal Government also declared last week that candidates will not participate in WASCE over safety concerns.
But at a virtual meeting by the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission, Commissioners, Special Advisers on Education and SUBEB chairmen reached an agreement to reopen schools for SS3 students to write their final examinations.
The meeting also agreed on the needs for Southwest states to implement a 2016 plan to establish a regional examination body akin to IJMB in the North.
The plan was laid out at the roundtable on creating a collaborative framework for education development and advancement in Western Nigeria in Osogbo, the Osun State capital in 2016.
A statement by the DAWN Commission indicated that all the states will reopen schools for SS3 students by August 3 with COVID-19 preventive measures in place.
According to the statement, the states will approach the Federal Government, at the first instance, to seek postponement of the WASCE by at least three weeks from the proposed resumption date.
At the second instance, states are to directly approach the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) to seek postponement of the examination to August 24.
On resumption, all schools are to appoint incident managers and classroom wardens, according to the document.
There will also be designation of quality assurance department for each state to issue a safety compliance certificate to each school before reopening.
The state will also encourage intensive advocacy campaigns to stakeholders including parents, teachers, caregivers, school owners and pupils on what is expected of them when schools resume.
The meeting also called on the WAEC to encourage Computer-Based Tests (CBT) in the future.