School returning for nervous Europe
Youths keeping masks on all day a challenge
BRUSSELS — In a world turned upside down by the coronavirus pandemic, rarely have so many kids relished the end of their summer vacations — and rarely have so many teachers faced such anxiety as school bells ring in a new year across much of Europe starting Tuesday.
The pandemic-strained months of this year’s summer break — with social distancing rules and enforced seclusion from friends — came on top of months of lockdowns and uneven online instruction since COVID-19 hit Europe.
Now, from Belgium to Russia, France to Hungary, tens of millions of kids will be unleashed upon one another in classrooms, gyms and playgrounds again. While it’s a joyous time for youngsters, parents and teachers are more than uneasy how that will fuel the continent’s daily infection rates, which are already much higher now than in May or June due to virus spread during family outings and summer vacations.
“The first thing I will do at school will be greeting everyone and hugging, because I’m full of love,” said Eva Aldanova, 10, who is heading back to her fourth-grade class in Moscow. “I will tell everyone that I missed them a lot. And I will get ready for my first lesson!”
Preparing schools for that first lesson has been a challenge throughout the continent, which, in contrast to many school districts in the United States, is choosing inclass teaching as opposed to online. Disinfectants need to be in place, better air circulation guaranteed, masks plentiful, ways to reduce interactions between large groups of students introduced. Some language teachers will even need transparent face masks so they can show pupils how to pronounce words.
“I feel OK, but I am a bit tired because we worked on all those plans, security plans, and risks assessments the last two weeks, and it was a lot of work,” said Karin Heremans, director of the Atheneum Antwerp in the northern Belgian port city.
One of the main worries is whether students will be able to wear masks the entire school day. The World Health Organization says students ages 6 to 11 should wear masks in cases where they cannot social distance, and students 12 and older should wear masks just like adults.
“We are really wondering how it will go if we ask students of all ages to wear one or two masks all day long,” said Luc Pirson, president of FAPEO parents’ federation in Belgium. “No adults (teachers) for the moment had to wear masks for 8 hours straight. So we really hope that teachers, administrations will make space in the schedule to allow students to breathe normally.”