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An Auckland school is responding to criticism for saying it would prefer that students not wear face masks.
The university principal said students are free to wear them if it makes them feel safe, but that being in front of a room full of masked students would be difficult for teachers.
Epidemiologist Michael Baker says he disagrees with the advice of St Kentigern College and believes that indoor masks should be part of alert level two.
In a letter to parents, caregivers and students ahead of school reopening Thursday, the school offered tips on how to bring hand sanitizer to school and stay home if you’re sick.
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Students were expected to attend unless they had been told to isolate themselves or have a medical condition that required them to stay home, the letter said.
But it was the line at the bottom regarding masks that is causing controversy.
“Face masks are not required and we prefer that they not be worn, however if it makes you feel confident it is okay to wear one,” the letter said.
Baker, a public health physician and professor at the University of Otago, said he disagreed with that advice.
“We know that almost all cases of transmission, and possibly all cases, occur through the respiratory mode of transmission, that is, droplets and aerosols.
“The main effective barrier against that, if you can’t physically distance yourself, is a mask.
“And even if you have a reasonable physical distance, masks are still a good idea, because people can generate aerosols that have a range that is much more than 2 m, particularly in congested indoor environments.”
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Saint Kentigern College, in Pakuranga of East Auckland.
Baker believes that masks should be one of the first things resorted to as intervention against Covid-19, but said they have never been fully integrated into New Zealand’s response.
Instead, the posts were mainly about hand washing, which doesn’t work against the virus in most transmission situations, he said.
Baker said it was a shame Auckland did not enter a “2.5 alert level” requiring masks indoors.
“If we look at the international level, the places that were most successful in managing this pandemic are the countries where the use of masks is the norm, not the exception.”
Masks are mandatory on Auckland public transport, except for children under 12 or those traveling to and from school.
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Professor Michael Baker of the University of Otago thinks it would be a good idea for students to mask themselves.
There is no official requirement to wear masks in other public spaces at alert level two, which takes effect at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday.
St Kentigern College Principal Russell Brooke said Things students who prefer to wear masks in the classroom will be able to do so.
The school’s position remains that they prefer not to be used, he said.
Brooke said it would be difficult for teachers to lead a classroom of masked new faces at the beginning of the school year.
“It is not easy to teach a room full of masks.”
However, the school was open to change if different official councils emerged, he said.
