Use the time before summer break wisely

There is a great opportunity to allow children back to school for one month from the beginning of June or even earlier.

There is evidence that children are in general unaffected by Covid. As an example one should look at the school-situation in Sweden. Sweden has allowed all primary schools and secondary schools for children up to the age of 15-16 to remain open, operating WITHOUT distancing rules. Focus lies instead on making sure pupils stay at home if they have any symptoms, good cough hygiene and hand-hygiene and no unnecessary contacts for pupils with elderly and risk-group individuals.

The above approach has so far yielded 0 (zero) deaths in Sweden in the age-groups 0-19years old (government official data: Folhalsomyndigheten https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/09f821667ce64bf7be6f9f87457ed9aa ).
To imply that schools being closed is the safest alternative to children at the moment is not true for many reasons, mental health and wellbeing being among them.




Why the contribution is important

Allowing children back to school before summer would give authorities and the public much needed confidence and also allow for a near normal school-situation after summer break. The R-number could also be monitored upon reopening schools prior to summer break with a natural closure after just one month that would provide another measuring point to elucidate the effect (if any) on the transmission rate.

We may have to accept that the more strict rules on social distancing that apply to adults and the elderly do not apply to children and we should be thankful for that. Teachers should maintain social distancing between themselves and parents.
The government could also change rhetorics as soon as possible to infuse confidence in the community so parents and children feel it is both safe and necessary to return to school.

by Gustavlinder on May 06, 2020 at 03:45PM

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Average rating: 1.7
Based on: 7 votes

Comments

  • Posted by Mcaulayg May 06, 2020 at 16:41

    This could work for children from P3 onwards that are able to part from parents and carers outside the school door or even walk on their own/with friends. However, younger children who need dropped off, taken to the building etc would only increase traffic between parents and teachers and parents. This would not work with children who cannot safely separate from a parent/carer or Early Years/Nursery children who require a parent to come into a building to help change or prepare for the day

  • Posted by jlaud3 May 06, 2020 at 17:23

    Considering the UK is now the second most affected in terms of the number of deaths, it's HARDLY fair to compare Sweden's strategy to what the UK should do. Re-opening schools too early in the UK just because Sweden did it is a terrible idea.

    Also, there are still a high number of staff with health conditions who would be unable to return to work so soon in May/June (for fear of contracting the virus when they already have a pre-condition or are pregnant), which means that schools would face a staffing struggle. With a subset of staff off, running some schools smoothly just wouldn't be feasible.

    Furthermore, would parents have confidence in allowing their children to return to school so soon in May/June? Parents and families need to feel that it's safe and secure to send their schools or else many will continue to be kept home, which would only further the learning gap. At that rate, play it safer, keep schools closed just a little longer, and let the home schooling/distance learning continue.

    There's so much more to consider than simply "let's reopen the schools".

  • Posted by nbain May 06, 2020 at 17:56

    I don't think schools should open until after the summer at least.

  • Posted by Nannamoon72 May 06, 2020 at 18:06

    Our school is open plan with no windows in most classes and no doors in all. The whole school can trail in front of a classroom. The school is massively oversubscribed and overcrowded. Each class (or base) is tiny (about the size of an average living room for over 30 kids) and children are literally shoehorned in. This idea would not work in our school - it is a hotbed of germs at the best of times.

  • Posted by Primary1Teacher May 06, 2020 at 18:48

    As a P1 teacher, I know how impossible social distancing would be with this age group, and in a school setting in general. Our classrooms are not physically big enough to space children out 2ms. Yes, children might not be badly affected, but who serves them lunch, who helps them when they fall over, who helps them when they have a toilet accident, who helps them to check their work? It is teachers, PSAs, office staff, janitors, cooks and huge amounts of parents congregating in the playground that would be affected. This is a hugely unsettling time for children, coming back to school only to be off again is more unsettling. Knowing that children will carry and pass that virus on to family members is so irresponsible. Schools are open to the children of key workers, and always have been, that is how it should stay for the foreseeable. I would LOVE my class to be back in school, but it is just not safe.
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