Among the government's avenues for slowing the epidemic of coronavirus and its variants, is the possibility of extending school holidays from early February to early March.

A proposal well received by the epidemiologists interviewed by Europe 1, who nevertheless recall an elementary rule.

For several days, while the coronavirus epidemic has progressed slowly but surely, the idea of ​​a re-containment has gained consensus in the scientific community.

Even if the government has so far rejected this hypothesis, the question still remains to know when.

At the same time, another idea is gaining ground, that of extending the school holidays.

It was released Sunday evening by the president of the Scientific Council.

Jean-François Delfraissy imagines the possibility of "adapting the school holidays".

And this solution, the extension of school holidays, is also a consensus in the scientific community.

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The idea would be to start the winter holidays at the beginning of February for all zones and to extend the holidays by 15 days for everyone, therefore with a return to class at the beginning of March.

"Even if schools are not amplifiers of the epidemic, there is contamination in the schools, so closing the schools makes it possible to go even further in controlling the epidemic risk", estimates Pascal Crépey , teacher-researcher in epidemiology at the School of Advanced Studies in Public Health.

"The holidays are coming at the right time"

In terms of rising concerns, the share of the English variant in current contaminations.

A more contagious virus, including among the youngest.

"As we know that the variant also affects children and adolescents really very well, we will have to have means to reduce the spread of the virus also among children and adolescents. So the holidays are coming at the right time", Renaud judge Piarroux, epidemiologist at the Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital.

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But all epidemiologists point out an elementary rule: exceptionally close schools, yes, but only if it is accompanied by other essential measures, such as for example a strengthening of teleworking.