On Wednesday 12 January, more than half of the students and teachers of secondary schools in Suriname registered the first day of school after the Christmas holidays. By doing so, they are responding to the invitation of the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture (MinOWC) to register as normal. Among all the schools, 70% of the students showed up in school. The pool of registered teachers was about 80%.
Vocational education has the highest attendance of the day. Many of these schools have an occupancy rate of 90%. The average student turnout for VWO, HAVO and SMO is 83%. In only two schools, half of the faculty was absent due to illness.
To measure attendance, the Ministry instructed the school administration to collect attendance, sickness and absenteeism data. Then the information was sent to the VOS Inspectorate.
This information will be analyzed to determine next steps. Additionally, this information should also provide MinOWC with insight into the optimal continuity of education in this COVID situation.
