All learners are expected to start the new school year on January the 27th. The Department of Basic Education says it doesn't expect its timetable to be affected by lockdown regulations since there's no evidence that schools pose a greater risk to spread the coronavirus than during the first wave of infections. Basic Education Director General, Mathanzima Mweli, made the announcements at a briefing YESTERDAY (monday 11 January) on the marking of matric scripts. He says that 238 matric markers have tested positive for Covid-19 and that two-thousand-700 had withdrawn from the process.