As opposed to the norm, all high school students in the boarding schools fêted their festive season at school owing to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. However, a tour to the schools conducted by The New Times indicated that various schools made special arrangements for students as part of the efforts to usher in the New Year. “The main thing to remember is that both Christmas and New Year were not cancelled in schools,” said, Samuel Nkurunziza, the head teacher of Kagarama Secondary School, adding that, celebrations were different. “It is a special day not just for our students but also to us. We prepared special meals, and shared with them like a family. Not all the staff werepresent, but generally it was a great day.” According to Nkurunziza, students relatively welcomed the idea of spending the festive season from school. “I believe students in the secondary level are mature and they obviously understand the situation. And that’s why none of them was rebellious.” Danny Kalisa, a student at Kagarama Secondary School told The New Times that he was able to call his parents to wish them well on New Year. “Actually it was the first time spending the festive season at school, but then we also had to spend it with our friends, because it is more like family. We meet our friends, colleagues, teachers and we have fun. We also had to call our parents, and wish them a happy new year, which I did.” He added, “We really missed our families but then it was also good sharing with our friends. In this new year my ambition as a student is to follow all the Covid-19 preventative measures and of course aim to get good grades.” Another student, Queen Kabandana, described celebrating New Year at school as dull, given that she couldn’t afford travelling with her family. “At home, we usually take trips. Also you miss a lot of things from home, you miss the food, the friends who are not at school, and this is family time actually.” She added. Similarly Angel Mugisha described the feeling as strange, citing that fellow students need to help each other feel the comfort of the New Year. “This is the first time I am spending holidays from school not to mention my birthday. This is so strange, but we are going to help each other spend these holidays at school. The most challenging part of it is to enjoy these holidays without your family, and also I like going out so it was something weird.” According to her, “It was amazing because we had good meals both on Christmas and today. We had lunch with our friends.” Speaking to The New Times, the Minister of State in charge of Primary and Secondary Education at the Ministry of Education hailed the resilience shown by students, urging them to further demonstrate the mantle during 2021. “Of course it has been a challenging year. Students went to school after a long break. It is even more complicated for the boarding students who didn’t get a chance to spend the holidays with their families.” “The Covid-19 pandemic has presented various challenges but we are happy with the way students and the respective schools have handled the situation,” he reiterated. Going forward, Twagirayezu said, “Much as the situation proves to be difficult, we request students to keep the perseverance and discipline demonstrated in the previous year.” Lower primary students are being thought of “We assure parents whose students are in the lower primary section that we are working around the clock to ensure that they return to school.” He added that, “We know parents are worried but we are also doing our best to ensure that the students return to school with safety as a priority.”
