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WITH the country registering 1,228 new cases on Monday (Oct 26), the highest daily Covid-19 infections to date, parents are eager to send their children to school.
From September 20 to October 21, a total of 1,257 elementary and middle school students were infected. In that period alone, twelve schools were closed.
While most parents, students and teachers prefer face-to-face learning, Education Minister Dr. Mohd Radzi Md Jidin noted that parents from homes with good Internet connectivity feel more comfortable if their children learn from home.
A quick scrolling through social networking sites confirms this. Many parent groups have been in an uproar with “stay home, stay safe” comments.
These sentiments are understandable, as most of the comments come from households with a decent internet connection and access to devices for online learning.
But schools for the majority of the population are more than a place of learning. School is a place where parents can drop off their children and not worry while they barely make a living.
The closure of schools indiscriminately and indefinitely would cause economic and social hardship, especially in low and middle income groups.
Allowing schools, as a general rule, to remain open with strict standard operating procedures (SOPs), should not be seen as a danger to our children.
Radzi has assured parents that 10,000 schools across the country are monitored daily; students and teachers who tested positive for Covid-19 had contracted the virus outside their schools; And as of last week (October 20), there were no student-to-student infections in the schools.
The reality is that we will have to continue living with Covid-19 for some time. Cases inevitably fluctuate. Schools with positive cases; those in areas under the conditional MCO; and those in red zones with infections within the community; It will be closed on the recommendation of the Ministry of Health.
NGOs, namely the Malaysian Parent Action Group for Education and the Melaka Action Group for Parents in Education, have rightly pointed out that schools cannot be closed forever, while the National Union of Teaching Professions has described the shutdown as a simple switch to control the spread of the virus.
In fighting the pandemic, parents themselves must step up and educate their children on standard operating procedures.
The responsibility for keeping your children safe cannot rest solely on the shoulders of teachers, schools, and government.
If your child is sick, keep him home. If you feel it is not safe to send your child to school, don’t do it.
In July, the Education Ministry said it was up to parents not to send their children to school if they were concerned about the pandemic, but that a letter was needed notifying the school of the decision. Some schools have even prepared the letters for parents to sign.
And while we cannot expect schools to close indefinitely, we can expect stricter standard operating procedures, a more efficient crisis management plan, and better communication from the Ministry of Education.
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