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A group of reserve teachers should prevent lessons from being canceled. For the first time in the fall break across the country this school year.
The 2020/21 school year will bring fall holidays nationwide for the first time, and fall camps in Vienna for the first time, as the city’s Education Councilor Jürgen Czernohorszky (SPÖ) announced to journalists on Thursday. In daily school life, despite the corona pandemic, there should be as much normality as possible, emphasized the Director of Education, Heinrich Himmer, at the appointment. A group of reserve teachers should prevent lessons from being canceled.
The model for fall camps is the city of Vienna’s summer camps. Starting October 27, there will be day camps in 30 schools with leisure activities and the option of learning support; costs will once again be 50 euros per week (including lunch).
Vienna Education Crisis Team
In order to make everyday school life as normal as possible in the new school year, an educational crisis team was created in Vienna, made up of representatives from the city’s education and health areas, which is supposed to support to schools with the school organization or educational problems in times of Covid-19. Information has been collected for parents on the most important questions about starting school (https://coronavirus.wien.gv.at/site/infos-fuer-eltern/). If you have any questions, students, parents and teachers can also contact the Corona direct line of the Directorate of Education (01/52525/77109). Czernohorszky announced that a similar hotline for kindergartens will also be available from Monday.
In any case, the lessons are guaranteed in Vienna, Himmer emphasized. In the event that teachers were absent as suspected cases or due to Covid 19 infections, reserve positions have been created. Large-scale school closings should not be allowed this school year, Himmer stressed. Children need a structured daily life, parents need security in planning. “Children are always attended at every stoplight.”
New strategy for suspected cases
In the case of suspected cases, the new strategy established in July has proven its effectiveness: only people with symptoms of the disease are withdrawn from class, the rest of the children can continue to be taught, avoiding contact with other groups. Only when a suspected case tests positive, they and close contacts (children of the same class or group) are quarantined for ten days and the health authority initiates further tests.
Speaking of testing: Mayor Michael Ludwig was convinced at the quote that Vienna was confident in the correct testing strategy. This means that in Vienna you can quickly find out who is affected and prevent entire locations from being closed. After a method has already been tested in Vienna with gargle tests, with which school children can be tested for Covid-19 without pain, the city now also wants to promote the development of a gentle method for kindergarten kids who are too young to gargle.
Ludwig also highlighted his “heart project”, free schools around the clock. Ten years after the introduction of free kindergarten, this year there will be 63 elementary schools and seven middle schools, in which the learning and leisure phases alternate throughout the day. “Here we are also pioneers in Austria.” Ten more full-time schools will be created each year, according to Czernohorszky. Places in existing full-time schools were also increased and a total of 200 new classes were created in schools in all compulsory schools compared to the previous school year.
(THAN)
