[ti:Schools Struggle to Reopen in Africa Because of Coronavirus] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]Many poor parents in African countries [00:03.32]say their children will have to miss the beginning of school this year. [00:08.96]Classes are returning after months of delay [00:12.88]because of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus. [00:19.88]Mike Ssekaggo is headmaster of Wampeewo Ntakke Secondary School [00:25.00]near Uganda's capital, Kampala. [00:28.80]He has answered concerns from parents [00:31.92]struggling to have their children in schools for the first time since March. [00:38.88]Many are worried over financial struggles [00:42.32]caused by the coronavirus health crisis. [00:46.88]They also are concerned about how to protect students [00:51.00]in often crowded classrooms. [00:55.08]Ssekaggo told the Associated Press that only half of his 430 students [01:01.52]had reported to class the day after he began admitting students [01:06.24]for the new school term. [01:08.96]School officials worry some children might not return [01:13.40]because their parents have not been working, he said. [01:18.76]In Uganda, officials have set requirements [01:22.44]that schools must meet before they can admit students. [01:27.80]Most of them could remain at home until as late as next year. [01:33.84]Schools must have enough hand-washing areas [01:37.88]and enough space in classrooms and living areas for social distancing. [01:45.24]While the health crisis has affected education around the world, [01:49.84]the crisis is more severe in Africa. [01:53.20]Up to 80 percent of students do not have access to the internet [01:59.08]and distance learning is out of reach for many. [02:04.68]Countries south of the Sahara Desert already have the highest rates [02:09.44]of children out of school anywhere in the world. [02:14.16]Nearly 20 percent of children between ages six and 11 [02:19.12]and more than 30 percent between ages 12 and 14 are not in school. [02:26.24]That information comes from the United Nations culture and education agency. [02:33.44]The decision to reopen schools remains a problem, [02:37.56]especially as the level of testing remains low. [02:43.00]Dr. Rashid Aman is Kenya's chief administrative secretary of health. [02:49.44]He said, "One of the things that we have been discussing [02:53.24]is how do we monitor the situation in schools [02:56.92]where we have large numbers of students." [03:01.08]He added, "I think definitely we will require to be doing some level of testing [03:07.32]in those populations to see whether there is transmission of asymptomatic cases." [03:14.84]As in Uganda, Kenya is implementing a phased reopening of schools. [03:21.56]Students taking tests to move to upper grade school, [03:26.44]high school and college reported in October. [03:31.28]The rest will return in January, but there is widespread concern [03:36.52]that schools were reopened too early as some have reported outbreaks. [03:43.56]Similar problems are reported in Zimbabwe. [03:48.60]More than 100,000 public school teachers [03:51.88]have been on strike since schools reopened. [03:56.52]The teachers are demanding better pay. [04:00.04]They also want protective equipment. [04:04.40]Raymond Majongwe is secretary-general of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe. [04:11.52]He warned parents against sending their children to school while teachers are on strike. [04:19.20]He said, "Results of the disaster happening with [04:22.88]unmonitored school children will be with us for a long time." [04:28.84]Officials in Uganda and Kenya [04:31.84]are not testing students for the virus before they come to school. [04:38.00]John Nkengasong is head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [04:44.88]He told reporters that while his group is not monitoring schools, [04:50.08]"we naturally expect there will be infections." [04:55.00]I'm Jonathan Evans. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM