Government launches self-study guides for Grade 7 pupils

Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Reporter
GOVERNMENT yesterday launched two English and Mathematics self-study guides for Grade 7 to assist learners in their studies while at home.

Government is implementing hybrid learning — face to face learning and distance learning — to bridge the gap caused by Covid-19 induced closure of schools.

The measures are meant to compensate for time lost in the education sector when schools had to prematurely close in March to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

The self-study guide handbooks have been simplified for learners with answers at the back pages so that when children go wrong, they can self-correct, just like the common Green Book used by examination classes for revision purposes.

Grade 7, Form Four and Form Six classes are expected to return to schools on September 14 for Cambridge examination sitting classes while those writing Zimbabwe School Examinations Councils (Zimsec) will reopen on September 28.

Zimsec public examinations are expected to start on December 1.

World Vision and its partners worked with the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education under its Improving Gender Attitudes, Transition and Education outcomes (IGATE) programme to produce the self-study handbooks aimed at addressing access to education for marginalised communities.

More than 1 500 teachers participated in designing the handbook that would be distributed in 300 schools under the IGATE programme.

The education ministry is sourcing funds to print the books so that they can be distributed in all schools.

Primary and Secondary Education Permanent Secretary Mrs Tumisang Thabela launched the handbooks yesterday at Lubuze Primary School in Insiza District, Matabeleland South.

The handbooks were distributed to 39 schools in the district.

Mrs Thabela said while schools have remained closed, education should continue and the self-study guides is important in complementing other learning delivery methods such as radio lessons and online learning. “Covid-19 has leapfrogged us into spaces where we have to learn to survive or become extinct like dinosaurs. Our learners should learn from the beginning to be independent and primary pupils today we are challenging you to be very efficient self-learners,” said Mrs Thabela.

“I bring you good hope and good news to say aluta continua with education. Education cannot wait, it has to move because we cannot tell how these pandemics are going to mutate, how they are going to be visiting us. So, what is important is to guarantee the communities that education will continue whether we are in the physical school or we are using the airwaves, signals or materials but learning has to continue.”

She said the time people are in calls for the whole education sector to innovate, invent and create new ways of doing things and address daily challenges.

Mrs Thabela said under the hybrid learning system, parents have to also actively participate and assist in the education of their children.

She said delivering online learning materials to marginalised communities is in line with Sadc education protocols.

“This is one effort that falls under Sadc programme called Care and Support for teaching and Learning under their pillar of material support. So, we want to say to World Vision and your partners you are putting us at a pedestal where we are being measured among Sadc countries on how we are responding to marginalised communities in providing them with material,” she said.

“You might also be aware that the Heads of State and Government in SADC continue to say they want to move as a team, they want to move as a block. So, when we actually share such strategies with other SADC countries, we feel proud because we would be sharing best practices.”

Mrs Thabela said Government will continue to address infrastructural challenges associated with the delivery of education to learners across the country.

IGATE World Vision director Mrs Janelle Marongedza said her organisation had targeted 2020 as a year of learning, and Covid-19 has left society trying to figure out the best way to deliver education.

She said the teachers have made the self-study guide a success.

“In over 300 schools in nine districts, IGATE has supported over 1500 teachers to work through seven literacy and numeracy teaching modules and building peer teacher supports to strengthen their teaching practices in literacy and numeracy aligned to the competency-based curriculum,” said Mrs Marongedza.

She commended some parents for actively participating in the teaching of their children.

One of the parents Mr Ndodana Khumalo, said they were receiving learning materials through WhatsApp to teach their children.

“We observed that some of the children were already regressing in their studies due to the prolonged time at home. But some of them started catching up. However, not all the parents are willing to their children to get these WhatsApp delivered lessons. I would like to encourage parents to actively be involved in the education of their children especially during Covid-19 as we do not know when pupils will return to schools,” said Mr Khumalo. — @nqotshili