Back 2 school
Getting ready to learn, masks and all
It’s the last day of home school for families before all students and teachers can return to their classrooms under level 2. While New Zealand, with the exception of Auckland, is moving into level 2 today, school have been given an extra day to prepare for reopening under the guidance of the Ministries of Education and Health.
On Monday, director-general of health Dr Ashley Bloomfield recommended pupils wear masks but said it wouldn’t be mandatory.
However, epidemiologist Dr Michael Baker told the AM Show yesterday that high school students should be wearing masks.
“They are just as good as transmitting this virus, and they have huge social networks.” It was already common all over the world, he said.
Baker said mask-wearing in secondary schools should be mandatory as this was an age group where Delta had proved highly transmissible internationally.
Whanga¯ rei Boys’ High School principal Karen Gilbert-Smith assumed that most staff and students will be happy to wear masks, even if there was no rule to enforce it.
“I believe students can wear masks correctly at secondary school,” said Gilbert-Smith. “I appreciate how difficult it is in a primary school with young kids who would be tugging and pulling, and not wearing it properly. But I think we’re in a different space in secondary school.”
She said some boys were wearing masks to school at different times during the year when they wanted to protect other people or themselves.
“We’re not going to enforce it. The last thing we want is another source of conflict.”
Gilbert-Smith said the school
wouldn’t single out students or staff who are not wearing a mask.
“There will be reasons why people can’t wear a mask and we have to respect that.”
Students will have an increased wha¯nau time on Thursday morning to remind them about good hand hygiene, physical distancing and other Covid-related advice.
Gilbert-Smith recognises that staff, parents and students might be hesitant to come back to school, however returning back to normality could help alleviate the anxiety.
“Going back to school will provide students with a sense of consistency and routine which is very important for young people.”
She said not all boys were thriving under distance learning during lockdown.
The biggest challenge would be for senior students who might be worried about their NCEA. “We need to be mindful about that,” GilbertSmith said.
“Senior students will definitely be our priority in terms of making sure they are properly set up for their end of the year.”
Meanwhile, a Whanga¯rei primary student is not that worried about wearing his cool crocodile mask to school tomorrow.
Six-year-old Jaxon Platts goes to Morningside School and is excited to see his friends again after learning from home together with his younger sister Penelope, who still attends daycare.
“Most times it’s hard to breathe,” Jaxon said. “But I think we should all wear a mask.”
Mum Natasha is happy for her son to return to school as there were no Covid cases in Northland.
She thought under-12s shouldn’t have to wear masks but older kids could be encouraged to.
“Jaxon and Penelope don’t mind wearing masks. They are also very aware of hand hygiene. Jaxon is very well equipped with the ‘not sharing anything with others’ concept — he wouldn’t even touch his sister’s food.”
Morningside School principal Tom Clarkson said the school was following the guidance of health authorities, and while masks weren’t mandatory he would support students or staff who decide to wear one.
“I’d imagine some wha¯nau will send their kids to school with masks. If they want to wear them, they will be supported.”
Clarkson said he didn’t notice any students who were wearing masks previously.
The school’s biggest focus will be attendance. “Getting the kids back to school will be our number one priority now.” Some families would experience increased anxiety and they might be reluctant to send children back to school, Clarkson said. However, the school staff had been “very proactive in communicating with our wha¯nau”.
“Any updates I get from the ministry I pass directly on to the community.”