Headache for teachers once schools reopen
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TEACHERS are gearing up to work extra hard and endure difficulties dealing with form five and six pupils who will return to classes on June 24.
They said they are worried about how to ensure pupils stick to health and hygienic practices that have been put in place.
Others also expressed concern on how to deal with pupils in boarding schools, especially after school hours when the children are mostly on their own.
Some are also worried about the time and effort needed to help pupils brush up, especially the weak ones, who have lagged behind in the weeks of no lessons.
“When a teacher comes back, we’ll see pupils quickly move their chairs back to their desks,” said the teacher at a Selangor secondary school.
Desks must be placed 1m apart under a new standard operating procedure (SOP) when schools begin reopening on June 24.
“This is one of the big problems we are anticipating. The school can set all the rules they want for pupils, but teenagers being teenagers, they will ignore them once our backs are turned,” he added.
The Education Ministry is putting in place an SOP to ensure that all pupils and staff maintain social distancing and prevent physical contact during school hours.
The initiative is part of a broader plan to open all public schools again in phases.
Another headache is for teachers to help pupils left behind when they were forced to study from home during the movement-control order (MCO), which started on March 18.
A The Malaysian Insight report on May 14 revealed that pupils from low-income and rural backgrounds found it hard to keep up with online learning due to lack of internet access and devices to access the web.
“Pupils who could not follow online lessons consistently would have to be taught again by their teachers and this will put added pressure when it comes to completing the syllabus, especially for those sitting for exams,” said Chia, another teacher in Selangor.
The ministry has pushed back major exams such as Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) and Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia (STPM) from year-end to next April.
“We are sceptical as to whether pupils will fully follow the SOP. But we have no choice but to resume school as pupils and parents are afraid that they will not have enough time to complete the syllabus.”
Adjustment period
Besides daily temperature checks, the new SOP for schools slashes the number of pupils per class to between 15 and 20 depending on the size of the school.
Schoolwork will only focus on individual assignments and there will be no assemblies, sports or co-curricular activities.
Another idea proposed is that except for form five and six, the other cohorts will take turns each week to attend classes so that each class can be capped at a maximum of 20 pupils.
For instance, form one and two pupils will attend school one week and study at home the following week, when their classrooms will be used by form three and form four.
Mohamad, a teacher in Penang, said teachers in large schools may have added classes as one class could be split into three instead of the usual two.
“So, if before we taught one class, now we have to teach three because of social distancing. On top of that, we have become healthcare front-liners to take temperatures and enforce the SOP,” said the secondary school teacher.
And then there are challenges to implementing the SOP in boarding schools, said Sarawak education minister Michael Manyin, where pupils are used to living together in crowded spaces.
Boarding schools are especially important in states with large rural districts as it helps pupils from poorer remote families to attend school.
“It’s the after-schooling hours that is a cause for concern. Who is going to monitor what they do and if they comply with the health SOP in the evening?” Manyin told The Malaysian Insight.
“Are they going to gather and mix in groups during meal times? How do we enforce social distancing in dormitories? Those with single beds are not a problem. But what about bunk beds?”
Macky Joseph of the Sarawak Teachers’ Union said at the end of the day, there will be a period of adjustment to the new norms by both teachers and pupils.
“Any new norm will give problems, especially to teachers and pupils, so we’ll just have to adjust accordingly.”
Radiah, a teacher from Kelantan, however, is optimistic that pupils can be made to follow the SOP as long as the stakes are explained to them.
“I think we should not underestimate how mature pupils can be especially when it comes to a crisis like this where everyone is affected. I think that they can understand the risks involved if they break the SOP.”
Ravi, Mohamad and Radiah refused to provide their full names as they are not authorised to speak to the media. – June 14, 2020.