Mixed views about sending kids to school
PETALING JAYA: Instead of fretting over the unpredictable nature of Covid-19, some parents are looking on the bright side as they find a silver lining in sending their children to school.
Mother of two Priya Krishnan, 40, said of the 38 pupils in her daughter’s Year Three class, only about 10 turned up.
This, she said, increased the attention and interaction between teachers and pupils.
“My daughter’s school practises strict standard operating procedure (SOP), and now with fewer kids in her class, they are seated further apart. So I’m not too worried.
“Their lessons have become more interesting as teachers are incorporating games during classes.
“My daughter used to be an introvert but now, she’s more active in class because she enjoys her lessons more,” said the journalist.
Starting yesterday, all schools in Sabah were ordered to close for two weeks by the Education Ministry.
As Covid-19 cases were also detected in SK Presint 8 (1) in Putrajaya and SK Bangsar in Kuala Lumpur, the ministry said in a statement that both schools had to close from Oct 9-16.
It also said any schools in the country that recorded a Covid-19positive case must close for seven days without having to wait for a risk-analysis assessment by the Health Ministry.
“This is to ensure that cleaning, disinfection and contact tracing can be carried out by the Health Ministry.
“Schools that recorded Covid-19 positive cases must follow the school closure guidelines that will be released by the Education Ministry,” the statement said.
As working parents, Fong Yit Meng and his wife felt they didn’t have the luxury of time to educate their Year One son at home.
They are grateful that teachers in their son’s vernacular school are observing the SOP strictly.
“The teachers are concerned about the progress of their pupils and are doing a good job teaching them amid the pandemic.
“E-learning is still very new and not as efficient as classroom learning.
“Life goes on ... the boy needs to learn how to navigate his life by understanding the virus and how to maintain a healthy lifestyle and personal hygiene,” said Fong, 37.
Some parents, however, are taking a more cautious approach.
Ann Gomez, 45, stopped sending her teenage sons to school on Thursday.
Since the rise in Covid-19 cases in Selangor, she and her husband have been taking turns to teach
their children who are in Forms
Two, Three and Five.
“The benefit of keeping them at home is that we get to spend more time together as a family and it reduces their risk of contracting the virus.
“Safety is a priority and we don’t want to take a risk, although we’re hoping to send them back to school after 14 days as they can’t afford to miss classes for too long,” she said.
She added that she was glad the secondary school her sons were attending gave parents the option of not sending students to school due to the spike in cases.