What should I do to resume school after summer vacation?
Antigen test ... August 29, 11:20
Summer vacation is over and school is reopening.
A new type of corona infection that spreads to children.
Depending on the municipality, there are different responses, such as extending the summer vacation and allowing you to choose to go to school.
The government has decided to distribute the new corona antigen test kit to elementary and junior high schools in order to strengthen infection control in schools.
A new response at the school site that is decided in a hurry.
What should I do to lead a safe school life?
(Reporter, Network News Department, Yasuyo Mabuchi, Shinya Fujishima, SNS Research, Kimiko Miwa, Tomoharu Nakato)
"I'm worried about the end of summer vacation"
Whether to send the child to school after the summer vacation.
Parents have voiced various voices about resuming school.
"I think we should take the form of voluntary closure."
This post was posted on SNS by a mother in her thirties who lives in Tokyo.
There are 40 children in the class attended by the daughter of the 4th grade.
He says that he is very worried that the classrooms will be crowded because there will be no gaps when the desks are lined up.
In addition, the daughter herself said, "I'm afraid to go to school."
After that, the opening ceremony scheduled for the 25th was postponed, and while the state of emergency was declared, 20 people were informed that they would go to school on each day of the week.
When the decentralized school starts, let's go to the school once on the first day to see how it looks.
“I was worried about what to do after the summer vacation as my child's infection increased. I was a little relieved to go to school in a distributed manner because there was no space to walk in the classroom. Wants children to spend their time at home alone. "
"I'm in trouble if the school is closed"
On the other hand, it was a single mother who had a son in the second grade of elementary school who posted that "it would be a problem if the school was closed".
When the school is closed, it is necessary to take a break from work and take care of the child.
However, it is not easy when you think about life.
"Since there are no relatives I can rely on nearby, I have no choice but to use paid leave to take time off from work, but if I take a long time off, my salary will decrease and I will not be able to live, so it is a vital issue for single-mother families. To be honest, I'm worried about letting them go to school, but considering my life, I have no choice but to let them go. "
What happens when school resumes?
Miyazaki City, where summer vacation has already ended and school has resumed.
On August 24, the first day of summer vacation, 1098 people were absent from school at public elementary and junior high schools due to concerns about infection.
This is 3.4% of children / students.
The city's board of education has decided not to absent from school due to anxiety about infection while the prefecture has issued its own state of emergency.
Many local governments have decided to temporarily close schools and extend summer vacation.
Yokohama City has 486 elementary and junior high schools in the city, which will be temporarily closed throughout August.
Even after the school is reopened on September 1, the classes will be divided into two groups until the 13th, and the school will be distributed.
As of August 25, there are more than 10 prefectures that have decided to temporarily close schools in August or extend their summer vacation.
Judgment of school attendance Some local governments leave it to their families
Some local governments leave the decision on whether to go to school to their families.
Saitama City will leave it to the family to decide whether or not to go to school during the state of emergency, and if it refrains from going to school, it will hold a "hybrid class" where classes can be taken online, which started on the 27th. ..
On SNS, the word "selective school attendance system" is used, and there are voices calling for such a response.
Antigen test kits are also distributed. The target is basically faculty and staff.
In addition, the educational field was forced to take new measures.
The government has changed the basic countermeasures against the new coronavirus, and considering that there is concern about infection of children at school, from early September, the new corona will be sent to kindergartens and elementary and junior high schools for up to about 800,000 times. We have included the distribution of virus antigen test kits.
"Antigen test" is a simple test that can check for infection with the new coronavirus in about 30 minutes.
Collect the sample from the back of the nose using the cotton swab of the test kit.
According to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, the subjects of inspection are basically faculty and staff.
It is a prerequisite for children and students to be instructed to return home promptly and consult a medical institution if they feel sick.
However, children who are in the 4th grade or above who can collect samples by themselves and who have difficulty returning home immediately are subject to the examination.
In that case, it is assumed that children and students will carry out the inspection themselves in the presence of faculty and staff.
Some teachers feel uneasy about witnessing
"I can't do this kind of work"
When it was difficult to show what to inspect, the one who posted on SNS was a male teacher working at a junior high school in Tokushima prefecture.
Up until now, as an infectious disease prevention measure, I have been increasing my work by disinfecting classrooms and creating infection prevention manuals in club activities, but it is said that this antigen test feels heavier than before.
Male teacher
"If I had to attend the inspection, it would be dangerous, so I think it is beyond the scope of the teacher's job."
A female nursery teacher who works at an elementary school in the Kinki region is worried that the infection may spread by testing at the educational site.
Female teacher
"There is only one nursery teacher at school. If you are infected and absent, there is a concern that the initial response to children's injuries and allergies will be delayed. If you distribute a test kit, inspect medical containers etc. I want more places and more people to inspect. "
If the child is supposed to be inspected ...
What if a sick child can't get home right away and has to do an antigen test at school?
We asked a doctor who is familiar with infection control and testing methods about the precautions.
Hiroyuki Kayaba, Director,
"In order to perform the test properly, it is necessary to put a cotton swab in the back of the nose, but if an unfamiliar child forces it, there is a risk of nosebleeds or the cotton swab breaking in the nose. In the first place, it is doubtful that a proper sample can be obtained. Also, even if you tell the collected sample to be placed in a predetermined place without contaminating the surroundings, not all children can do it. I don't think it's realistic to collect it. "
Dr. Kayaba points out the difficulty of having a child perform the correct test on his own.
Furthermore, even if the test is negative, it is said that you cannot be relieved.
Hiroyuki Kayaba, Director of the Center
"There are cases where the test result is negative even though you are infected. If you return to the group with confidence because it is negative, the infection may spread, and it is firmly in the field that negative is not an indulgence. Should be known. "
On top of that, Director Kayaba says that if you need to witness a child's examination, you need to be aware of the following points.
▽ The faculty and staff who are present will take solid training and training in advance.
▽ Since a cotton swab is put in the nose, it is easy to sneeze.
Splashes can fly over a radius of 2 meters, so witness faculty and staff should wear solid equipment such as masks, aprons, eye guards, hats, and gloves.
▽ Do not stand in front of the child.
▽ Thoroughly cover the mouth of the child to be inspected with a mask.
▽ Prepare a separate room instead of a health room where other children enter and exit.
Choices to save your child's life
As the infection spreads to children, the response at the school site is decided in a hurry.
Educational administration experts say it's important to show different options when resuming school.
Professor Kaori Suetomi
"The most important thing in education right now is to shift to diverse learning to save the lives of children. Parents who are worried about sending their children to school should take the courage to rest. However, it is important for the school to respect it. I have heard that there are cases where people say, "Are you resting because of anxiety about infection?", So until the new corona virus is resolved, It is necessary to assume that there are children and parents who are at risk of infection at school. "
"Since students now have terminals such as tablets, I think it will be necessary to take online lessons, etc., regardless of the form of going to school, while there is a risk of life."