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24 April 2020 Dear Parents and Members of the St Cyprian’s School Family I wish our Muslim families Ramadan Mubarak during this holy month. I was hoping to have news of school openings prior to writing this letter but we are now advised that we will learn more from the Minister of Basic Education on Monday. I have also delayed our intended survey until we receive some clarity regarding how relaxing elements of lockdown will impact on us. In whatever manner we do stagger our opening, we are aware that we will need to livestream lessons as we will have girls unable to attend school at various stages, such as if they have mild symptoms, become first contacts and go into quarantine, or are considered immune-compromised. There is no doubt that, just as there is a school-fitness that girls and teachers quickly acquire at the start of a term, so it is with distance-learning, and it has been comforting to note that teachers and students are adapting and finding their rhythm to this new style of learning. The feedback from the girls through the subject-specific questionnaires as well as in my meetings with parents, has been invaluable in this regard. I thank you for this and am determined to maintain open communication channels with parents and girls to ensure that we are optimizing our teaching and learning. In my assembly message to the High School girls this week, I referred to a world that is irrevocably changed. It is my sincere hope that we will witness the emergence of a gentler and more compassionate world in the weeks and months to come. As a school, we have thought carefully about what project we wish to adopt to express this and we shall be launching that next week. In the words of Franklin D. Roosevelt, “We have always held to the hope, the belief, the conviction that there is a better life, a better world, beyond the horizon.” In closing, I wish to celebrate the remarkable adaptability and resilience of our teachers and students. They have taken up the challenge and made it work exceptionally well. I am proud of them! I am proud of us all. Warm regards Shelley Frayne |
