Mokopane English Combined School Update COVID-19
Dear Parents.
I trust that you and your families are well and that the lock-down and preventative measures are keeping you safe from the pandemic. We now live in difficult times where the unknown has become the norm and uncertainty pervades our lives. However, as South Africans we are known for our resilience and good old fashioned grit, faith and hope, and we will get through these testing times. There is light at the end of the tunnel. Our President sent out some positive news and I include an extract:
“Wuhan, a city of 11 million people in the province of Hubei, had more than 50 000 infections. Now, after more than two months after stringent lockdown measures were put in place, the province has had fewer than 20 new cases in the past two weeks.
But the lesson from the South Africans in Wuhan is that a lockdown works. It shows that if we strictly observe the rules in place to stop the virus spreading, we will be able to bring infection rates down. It shows that if we cooperate with health authorities in doing what we have to do, we won’t be just saving our own lives but those around us too.”
I am exploring ways in which we can continue with our teaching and learning should the lockdown be extended. There are many, many LMS (learning Management Systems) online platforms that range from highly advanced to fairly basic and we are finalizing a choice of the most appropriate one that will allow us to offer services to our students and parents with minimal cost and access challenges. In the event of the shutdown being extended please assist by doing the following now:
Primary School and High School Parents
Please ensure, if you can, that your child/children have the following:
- Will have access to Wi-Fi with data via a computer or smart phone
- Has an email address (Gmail please)
- Has the WhatsApp app on their phone.
Foundation Phase Parents
We have you all on a media group and will contact you regarding suggested home school options.
For the entire school, it is of vital importance that from an academic and a social point of view that our teachers keep contact with you and or your child/children
School Fees
Like you, we were are concerned about the effect of the shutdown on the economy and we going to implement very strict cost saving measures to help us manage our financial landscape over the next few months. We will make every effort to carry parents who are unable to pay fees in the short term. However, when this is all over you will need a quality school for your child/children and we cannot risk the school having to close due to lack of income. Our expectation is that fees will be paid and where necessary we will enter into conversations with parents who are unable to pay the full amounts owing.
We need to be united at this time and stand together to ensure that after the storm our children will have a bright and secured future.
Warmest regards
Brian
