There are, however, some parents in the Free State who are for the reopening of schools, and wish that more grades will be allowed to return earlier than planned. Koffiefontein resident and mother to three children, aged, three, five and seventeen, Mariska Potgieter, tells OFM News she is scared to send her children back to school as the pandemic escalates in South Africa. She, however, remains cognizant that the children cannot afford to miss out on teaching time and engaging with their peers. The latter of which she says is important for their social development. Potgieter, in fact, wants the basic education department to consider sending more children to school in June as opposed to just learners in grades 7 and 12.

Potgieter says it makes more sense to send learners at the beginning and end of phases back to school - as in grades R,1,4,7,8,12 - instead of just the two grades. She is also in support of having children who have the resources in the form of data to study and learn from home, to continue to do so. “Parents, teachers and children are just going to have to pull up their socks and work harder to get everyone through the year,” says the Koffiefontein parent. In addition to this, she suggests that the return to normality should be done on a municipality by municipality basis. For instance, municipalities with no cases should be able to allow more grades to return to school.

Potgieter’s sentiments have been echoed by Grey College teacher, Cheré Jordaan, who tells OFM News that “we can’t stay at home forever, even if it’s the safest thing to do”. She says we should face this thing head-on and continue with our lives, while protecting ourselves as best as we can. As a teacher, Jordaan says she is confident the school she works for will prepare adequately. 

Janah Posthumus, a teacher at Universitas Primary, like Potgieter, hopes the Basic Education Department will return other grades earlier. She says as it stands the back to school programme waits too long for other grades. She believes that resuming the academic year in August even for a primary school learner, is too late.

While most Free State parents seem to be on the same page on the matter, it remains contentious on a national scale. Prior to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s address on Sunday the National Association of Parents in School Governance, acting on behalf of the Congress of South African Students (Cosas), submitted documents to intervene in the DA’s court application to oppose the lockdown regulations. The association not only indicated that more should be done to prepare for the reopening of schools, they further criticised the back to school plan in place, calling it vague and  a risk to the lives and health of teachers and learners. South Africa has 11 217 active cases of the Coronavirus, with 481 deaths reported thus far.

OFM News