Govt Cards March 7 for School Resumption; Voices Call for Restoration of GSS
Following the announcement made by the Minister of Education, Octavia Alfred, that school classrooms will reopen on March 7, several voices across the country have begun to call on the government to restore the Goodwill Secondary School (GSS) for physical learning.
GSS was damaged by Hurricane Maria in September 2017 and has remained abandoned since then. Former education minister Herbert Sabarohe said that restoring the school will make it possible to learning to resume at the facility and will enhance the classroom accommodation needs of students.
Sabarohe regretted that millions have been spent on constructing hotels and tourist attractions in Dominica while several schools damaged by hurricanes remain abandoned and forgotten.
Given that Alfred stated that physical distancing and attendance shifts will be implemented at the coming resumption, Sabarohe said the reconstruction of GSS five years ago may have made this approach unnecessary.
A leading member of the UWP, Glenroy Cuffy, also added his voice to the calls to have GSS rehabilitated for school use. He said the school would have celebrated its 26th year anniversary in 2017 when Maria hit, and would have celebrated 31 years of establishment this year if it was still running.
Cuffy said restoring the school will make face-to-face learning activities possible for students as the new arrangement occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic.
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