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Sierra Leone: Back to class after the Ebola outbreak

Students remain hesitant to attend recently reopened schools after the deadly spread of Ebola.

With Ebola still at large in parts of Sierra Leone, all students must have their temperatures taken every day.

By Tommy Trenchard

Published On 30 Apr 2015

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Freetown, Sierra Leone – Children in the West African nation of Sierra Leone finally resumed classes almost nine months after the Ebola outbreak forced schools to shut down.

On arrival they were greeted by buckets of chlorinated water and teachers armed with digital thermometers. Though new cases have dropped sharply over the past few months, nobody was taking any chances.

But amid continued fear of crowded spaces and an economy battered by the restrictions put in place to fight Ebola, just a fraction of students actually turned up.

In one classroom in the Tengbeh Town neighbourhood of Freetown, just 11 out of 105 Class 1 pupils arrived. Their bemused-looking teacher said some of the parents were still too afraid of letting their children associate with others for fear of catching Ebola.

“After so long it’s tough to get them back in the system,” said Isabel Rissogill, a researcher with Save the Children. “Some are too busy working to support their families.”

With exams now scheduled for August, it is a race against time to get children back in school in time to prepare.

A teacher fills a bucket outside a school in the Tengbeh Town neighbourhood of Freetown.
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A primary school teacher writes Ebola safety slogans on the blackboard on the first day of term.
In one school in Tengbeh Town, just 11 of 105 students turned up in Class 1.
A boy looks into a classroom where a lesson is in progress on the first day of school.
In the slum community of Kroo Bay, many schools were not ready to reopen on time earlier this month.
Children fly kites on the first day after schools reopened in Sierra Leone, nine months after they were shut down to prevent the spread of Ebola.
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The family of Admaya Mansaray, 9, say they cannot afford to send her back to school. Even though school should be free, parents say teachers demand unofficial fees.
Secondary School student Isata Summah (right) had to drop out of school as money became scarce during the Ebola outbreak. Instead she now sells mangoes at the market to make ends meet.
Curious children listen in on a class. A week after term began, most classrooms were still largely empty.
Hassan Kamara used to fund his own education by selling second-hand clothes, but he says the business crashed during the Ebola outbreak.