Govt must fund e-learning if schools close

By KETRA KALUNGA GOVERNMENT should set aside funds for more learning materials in the event that schools close due to Covid-19 so that pupils continue learning, the Zambia National Union of Teachers (ZNUT) has said. ZNUT, general secretary, Newman Bubala said in an interview that Government should come up with a line budget to fund the production of materials for home learning for pupils in rural areas and expand on TV learning programmes. Mr Bubala noted that last year, when schools closed for almost two terms, certain things were done haphazardly with regard to TV learning. He said with funds available, the Ministry of General Education would put in place measures to ensure that all learners have access to the learning channels. “This is not a new thing, we knew what happened last year, the challenges we had. Now this thing has come again, if close, what measures are we going to put in place, how best can we improve so that our children can continue learning?” he wondered. M. Bubula said once the Ministry of Health advises that schools should be closed, the Ministry of General Education should be ready to find alternative ways of learning to avoid losing more time on the 2021 academic calendar.