Ministers reject calls for schools to shut doors early for Christmas
STORMONT leaders have said children should stay in school for the full term before the Christmas holidays.
First Minister Arlene Foster and Deputy First Minister Michelle O’neill were speaking after calls to shut schools on December 17 in line with England.
Answering a question from the Belfast Telegraph at a Stormont briefing, Ms O’neill said she understood the concerns of parents, pupils and staff.
“I think we all know the first part of this pandemic undoubtedly disrupted the education of children and caused anxiety as well among many children,” she said.
“So I think that any decisions that are made in terms of schools and what schools do has to be based on the public health advice, the scientific advice and informed by the rate of transmission at any given time.”
Mrs Foster added: “There is a concern that if children are not in the safety of school and the routine of school, and if some of their parents have to continue to work — which is the reality, most parents do work — then what happens to those children if they get out of school early?
“Are they out and about in the community rather than being in their own homes or in schools.”
On Thursday, the Alliance Party’s Chris Lyttle, who is also chair of the education committee, called for schools to shut on December 17.
“The Education Minister should have planned to move schools to remote learning whilst making provision for vulnerable, special school and key worker pupils from December 11,” he said.
“The least the Education Minister can do now is to ensure all teaching, non-teaching staff and children break for Christmas no later than counterparts in England on December 17, which has significance for contact tracing during the Christmas period
“Any later than this date could have implications for effective contact tracing and the Education Minister must urgently clarify how this system will work for children during Christmas, when the responsibility for its operation could otherwise be with school leaders throughout the holiday.”
Many schools across Northern Ireland have already assured parents that their child will still be marked as present even if they chose to learn remotely.
Principal Martine Mulhern of St Cecilia’s School in Derry said that while she can see the advantages and disadvantages of keeping the schools open, she said the pressure students are under because of the impact of coronavirus led her to withdraw her students from exams in January.
She said: “There is no doubt, students thrive better when they are in school and that is where they want to be.
“Seeing the disappointment on the faces of my students who have to leave their friends behind and go into quarantine, and seeing how much better they do when they are in the classroom has left me undecided about whether or not the schools should close early for Christmas.
“Being in school is the best place for the students — there is no question about that but I fully understand why some parents would want their child to stay at home because that suits their family circumstances best.”
A spokeswoman for the Department of Education said the Education Minister had no plans to extend the Christmas holidays.
They added that face to face teaching remained the best way to provide education in a controlled and safe environment.