Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga announced on Tuesday that rotational classes will continue until the Covid-19 regulations are amended.

She was briefing the media on the opening of schools for the 2022 school year, explaining that for now the same Covid-19 protocols that applied at the end of last year will continue.

“Until such time that we amend the regulations things stand as they are. We had encouraged schools that were able to accommodate learners with a reduced social distancing now of 1 m to do that and make sure that we can bring back as many learners as possible,” she said.

Schools are encouraged to find more spaces to create situations to get more learners in attendance but still based on the existing protocols.

Motshekga said last year the Basic Education Department wanted the social distancing space to be reduced to 0.5 m to allow for the accommodation of more learners in schools.

The department has requested provinces to work on providing infrastructure to schools that technically were even overcrowded before Covid-19.

Motshekga said in 2021, there was a significant decline in school closures, compared with 2020's "stop and go, stop and go".

Meanwhile, the Gauteng Department of Education announced that a total of 276 564 grade one and grade eight online admissions applicants had been successfully placed.

The department said officials were implementing the means of providing necessary support to schools to ensure that the 1 465 applicants who remained unplaced were accommodated.

Motshekga appealed to parents to allow provinces to place learners where there were places for them.

COVID-19 VACCINATIONS

Motshekga said that at the time the Department of Health (DoH) announced vaccines would be available to children aged 12 and above, the Department of Basic Education was "busy with exams" and could not put a vaccination programme in place.

She explained that working with school governing bodies, with parents and the DoH, the department will "intensify the programme to encourage young people to vaccinate and also encourage parents to get their kids vaccinated".

"We are not vaccinating in schools as yet," said Motshekga, explaining that the DoH does not have the capacity to be in schools.