While Britain and the US are reeling from a combined 40,000 deaths from the coronavirus pandemic, Australia is paralysed over something as elementary as who should go to school | OPINION
Australia is now reporting fewer than two new COVID-19 cases per million each day and only 2 per cent of those are school age. There is minimal, if any, evidence that children catch or spread this disease at school.
When a South Australian year 8 student caught COVID-19 from a close contact and school staff member, it was illustrative on two counts. First, this was an adult infection of a child, not the other way around. Second, when the odd child gets COVID-19, it is a front page story.About a third of families are made up of either a single working parent or two working parents. If their work wasn’t essential, they wouldn’t be paid to do it.
Same goes for parents where appropriate care arrangements aren’t available. Many home businesses can’t facilitate learning at home. Often the parent that could do it is the one employed. Finally, children, who despite parents’ best efforts, struggle to learn in a home environment for any unavoidable reason should be welcomed back. Only a bum of a principal would turn them away.
Unions need to stop raising the white flag during this pandemic. Complaints about lack of hand sanitiser, student distancing or risks for older teachers can be solved with a little planning and innovation by administrators; the kind of agility the rest of the economy is showing through this crisis. Slamming the gate on children simply to cull attendance prevents that innovation from occurring.
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