As the rise of global pandemic and increasing number of cases every day in Pakistan. The government has taken a decision to postponed the school opening till mid-June. It is not confirmed that there will be no prevalence of COVID-19 soon, it may be here to stay for a while, which means the schools must prepare to operate in times of COVID-19. This calls in for actions to be taken by the various educational authorities to launch relevant programs that focus on the professional development of the key educational leaders pertinent to COVID and school reopening management. Schools have an organic culture of peer interactions, infrastructure that supports group and cluster learning, children and teachers interacting for formal and informal learning and many stakeholders under one roof making learning happening. This means high volume of social interactions and potential human transmission of the virus. On the other hand, it is utmost essential to also continue the learning in a structured manner so that students’ academic development is optimally benefited. This makes it fundamental for the school owners and administrators to plan and mitigate strategies for school reopening and COVID management. This can be done by planning and streamlining standard operating procedures to practice physical distancing, disinfecting the school premises and the classrooms, training of teachers and parent communities for preventive health care and mitigating for risk expected to emerge on the school reopening.
Dr Sheila Bhammani
Karachi
