EDITORIAL: Monitor COVID in schools
The war against COVID-19 is still raging, yet life must go on. For Barbadian children, this global health crisis has impacted them psychologically and socially. Their education has also been another casualty. With the resumption of classes last week and the recent news of one or two students possibly positive with COVID-19, there is the challenge of what measures can be put in place to monitor our children from this dreaded virus.
A call for real-time monitoring
In an article published in The Barbados Advocate yesterday, the Barbados Secondary Teachers’ Union (BSTU) underscored the “importance of the COVID-19 Unit to visit schools while they were in session, in order to facilitate a real-time, practical understanding of the day-to-day realities of school environments and the resulting potential to implement successful recommendations”.
The modern school environment ,despite its timetable and teacher supervision, has several possible challenges for the COVID-19 team tasked with monitoring the plant. Pre-COVID-19, students were instructed to run errands; they were also given free access to visit canteen operators and other food vendors; parents and guardians would come to the compound to collect or drop off students and meet teachers and senior educators; there were washroom breaks; and students also interacted with their friends and other classmates regularly during and outside of classes. For staff, interaction regularly occurred with their fellow teachers, students, and other ground staff.
Post-COVID, there are two major issues for students and staff members on the school compound – classrooms are too small for students, staff rooms are too small for teachers; and it is difficult to sanitise the contact surfaces – chairs, desks, washrooms, and school supplies. While the Ministry of Education has employed school monitors to ensure pupils follow the COVID-19 health and safety protocols, this is not without its shortcomings.
The reality is all children using the school system must be monitored through contact tracing. It is crucial to know where they live, who are their immediate contacts, how they travel to and from school, and what are their health challenges or exposure to infection.
The question of vaccinating school children
Globally, policy leaders in healthcare are studying the vaccination of infants and children for COVID-19. For those who are attending school, this could result in the resumption of normal face-to-face learning. But parents are hesitant with many citing the haste in which the vaccine was rolled out and limited research on its effects and side effects on the body. Alternately, for students who have access and the hardware, schools should encourage hybrid learning – a combination of online and face-to-face classes for the long term.
Wear the mask, practise physical distancing
The key to keeping everyone safe while at school relies on two principles – wearing the mask and keeping six feet apart. Children, due to their age, will be more compliant in wearing their masks properly. With some effort, the number of students exposed to COVID-19 will remain low. But children must be provided with the guidelines to ensure their safety.
The coronavirus is just one of many global health crises this region will face. Our school children will have to cope with other environmental issues as seen with the volcanic ash from La Soufrière. Rigorous contact tracing will play a vital role in identifying possible clusters or hot spots of COVID-19. The fight continues and we must do our best to safeguard future generations.