Acceptance as back-to-school goes back online

Jewish schools are resuming online teaching, and while the situation is causing some frustration, parents have expressed support for the schools’ caution.

From playschool to matric, most students in the community began the school year this week. Following the government’s announcement that the opening of public schools has been postponed to 15 February, Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi appealed to private schools to do the same to avoid putting strain on the province’s struggling health system.

Consequently, Jewish schools such as King David, Yeshiva College, Maharsha, Hirsch Lyons, and Herzlia have opted to continue with online lessons following an initial two-day orientation held on campuses early this week.

“We brought the kids onto campus on different days for orientation, and then will be moving online for three days,” says Rabbi Shimon Pinski, the principal of Maharsha Boys Primary. “We will assess the situation towards the end of the week after the government gazette has been finalised.

“We’ve seen the positivity of kids studying at school in spite of all difficulties. We are vigorously keeping all protocols laid out by government, and following the recommendations of Professor Barry Schoub and Dr Michael Setzer. We hope that our postponement will end soon, and we can get our kids back to school depending on numbers, regulations, and doctors’ advice.”

“Our nursery school will be open on campus from this week, with all protocols in place, but Grades 1 to 12 have gone online after an initial orientation,” says Rabbi Steven Krawitz, the academic principal at Hirsch Lyons. “We’re waiting for the government to clarify the way forward for private schools.”

Andries van Renssen, the executive director at Herzlia, says parents’ reactions to the way in which the school has reopened have been mixed, though they are generally much more favourable towards in-person teaching.

“During orientation, it was clear how excited the children were to be back and how eager they were to start the learning process,” he says. “Teachers and management are making a real effort to create the safest possible learning environment.”

These efforts are clearly being recognised by parents across the schools, in spite of the frustration the situation is causing.

“Infection numbers are very high at the moment, and schools are using good systems to cope with the pandemic,” says Adina Roth, whose seven and 11-year-old children attend King David Victory Park (KDVP). “I trust King David, and I feel it’s wise to wait for a while until things are a little bit safer.

“The school hasn’t tried to sugar coat anything, and it has made its commitment to in-person teaching clear, which I find reassuring. Expectations have to shift in a pandemic, and we can’t carry on as normal when people are dying.”

Nonetheless, Roth firmly believes that online teaching is no substitute for the classroom experience.

“It’s not just about receiving knowledge but the interactions which come with learning,” she says. “It’s challenging on a personal level when you need to help the younger ones with their classes and work at the same time, but there’s a bigger picture here. We need to deal with the situation and support the school.”

Lara Jersky, whose son began Grade 1 at King David Ariel this week, says that she felt nervous at the thought of him going back to school in person.

“The orientation was good, but I feel more secure that my son will be at home from school for now,” she says. “Yes, it means some stress for me in terms of work and looking after him, but we’ll have to see how it goes. In-person school is an added stress, so I’m happy with the way things are for now.

“Of course, human interaction is gold for kids, and it’s what we want, but schools are definitely doing the right thing.”

According to mom Bianca Rubenstein, Yeshiva College is the only school which hasn’t reopened its nursery school for in-person teaching, causing some strain.

“I’m still dealing with the post-traumatic stress disorder from online classes last year,” she laughs. “I have four kids, the eldest is in Grade 3, and it was a nightmare to run from room to room to see that they were all online.

“My youngest son was to go back to nursery school until Sunday, when we got an email to say things had changed. It wasn’t easy to accept. I was happy for him to go. I could then focus on the other kids online.

“I’m annoyed that he won’t be going back, but I trust Yeshiva’s protocols. You can’t complain or blame in this situation You need to see it for what it is.”

Shelley Meskin says that the changes haven’t been easy for all kids to accept. Her children, eight and 11 years old, attend KDVP.

“My 11-year-old is in mourning,” she laughs. “Last year’s online schooling was incredibly difficult for her. She works off the energy of the other kids and the teacher, so it wasn’t the ideal system for her.

“It’s sad that they can’t be at school, but it’s difficult to decide the right thing to do in this situation. We don’t know whether we should stop our lives or carry on. We want to see our kids back at school because we are growing a generation that won’t know how to deal with things in person after staring at a screen all day.”

Nonetheless, she stresses that parents need to make safety a priority. “People need to listen and do what’s safe,” she says. “Our community hasn’t been so good at that. If we don’t listen, we’ll suffer the repercussions. Whether you agree with the decision or not, you need to follow the rules. If we do that, we’ll get our kids back to school before long.”