February return looks a no-go as Martin focuses on reopening of special schools
TAOISEACH Micheál Martin has signalled that students are unlikely to be able to return to the classroom on February 1, saying the Government’s priority is now focused on reopening special schools.
It comes as Deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Ronan Glynn insisted that the reopening of special schools would not have an impact on the spread of the virus, despite some SNA and teacher unions’ objections.
It has been the Government’s intention to keep schools open at all costs during the pandemic, however the continuing rapid spread of the virus has forced it to reconsider its plans.
‘Transmission levels are too high’
Asked if parents can expect schools to open next month, Mr Martin said: ‘I do not want to preempt the Cabinet sub-committee meeting on Monday, but clearly community transmission levels are too high. The focus right now is on special schools and the whole area of special education.’
The Taoiseach added that he met with Education Minister Norma Foley yesterday ‘to take stock’.
‘They all still share an objective –a combined objective – to make provision for children with special needs as soon as that’s possible,’ Mr Martin, a former teacher, said. ‘That work is ongoing. On the wider schools issue, that issue will be discussed by the Cabinet committee on Monday, and we’ll await the input of ministers and the other party leaders on that.’ Speaking at the Oireachtas Health Committee yesterday, Dr Ronan Glynn said pupils and staff of special schools are relatively low in number and their return would not affect the spread of Covid-19. He said his view and those of Chief Medical
Officer Dr Tony Holohan were clear and were contained in a letter of January 5. ‘The number of pupils and staff in special schools represent a very small proportion of the 1.1million in the school sector overall,’ he said. ‘From our perspective, would 3%, 4% or 5% have an impact on the high levels of community transmission of the virus we are seeing now? No, it would not. It would not have an impact on mobility at a community level.’
Meanwhile, Dr Colm Henry has echoed CMO Dr Holohan’s concerns that transmission levels are ‘too high’ for all schools to reopen.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, the HSE’s chief clinical officer said: ‘It is tragic that we’re talking about school closures again.
‘We learned during the first surge how much harm was done to children, particularly early-school children in special needs environments. Certainly, nobody wants to see this protracted, but the transmission levels at the moment are far too high – ten times what they were in early December.
‘It needs to reduce to much lower levels before we can add any additional risk mixing crowds and people into school settings.’
The Irish National Teachers’
Organisation told the Irish Daily Mail it acknowledged the comments of the public health experts, but failed to reach an agreement with the Government at an advisory meeting yesterday afternoon.
‘While the relevant comments from Dr Glynn and Dr Henry were not provided to INTO directly, they are, of course, significant,’ a spokesperson said.
‘The health and safety of our members, and their pupils, is the main priority of INTO.
‘In addition to the current high levels of transmission within the community, detailed by Dr Glynn, our members are concerned about the potential level of transmission within classrooms should they be reopened prematurely.’
The spokesperson added while the INTO participated in a meeting on special education on Thursday
82% of parents say children stressed
with the Department of Education, no decisions were made.
‘We are committed to working within this process to advance the reasonable concerns of our members to secure a safe and orderly reopening of our schools,’ the spokesperson added.
‘INTO will not provide a running commentary on talks with the Department and NPHET. We will provide a statement when definitive decisions have been taken. In doing so, we are acutely aware of the anxiety amongst both teachers and parents owing to the ongoing speculation.’
When asked what response special needs assistants’ union Fórsa had on the health experts’ comments, a spokesperson said: ‘We’re back in an engagement with the Education Department with a view to finding a solution to this situation as quickly as possible.
‘We’ve agreed not to make public comment for the time being.’