Parent positive, but no school contact

A PARENT at a Gold Coast school has tested positive to coronavirus.

However, the principal says results taken from children in the family have come back negative, they were immediately self-quarantined and the parents did not come into contact with other staff or students.

“Therefore we need take no further action at this stage,” Pimpama State School principal Marius Marx said in a letter to the school community yesterday. “I wanted to share this information as a reminder to us all that we are not removed from this significant public health situation and to use this notification as a reminder that we all need to redouble our efforts regarding hygiene and social distancing.”

The notice comes as teachers continue to push for closure of schools across the Gold Coast as some parents choose to keep their children at home.

Teachers said student numbers at state primary schools were dwindling with as few as seven kids in a class that usually has 25.

A private school teacher said she was having to teach children in her class, mark homework from students who were learning online and then prepare extra work outside school hours.

“I’m really over it, this is just ridiculous, they should just make a call and close the schools,” she said.

Another urged parents to be patient as they worked through requests from students working from home while juggling their regular class numbers.

“We are working hard to provide options while giving students a sense of normality,” the teacher said.

“Students are stressed and are picking up on the concerns of their parents, so providing structure seems just as important now as teaching.”

But not all teachers are resentful at having to continue working.

One told the Bulletin she felt “blessed to have a job and enjoy the normality of coming to school.

“However, I am not a carer of the elderly or parents and so I only have myself and husband to worry about in terms of getting sick,” she said.