All across the Nations’ school campuses, parents question if their students are safe from Covid while at school. While many schools worldwide have officially reopened their campuses, many parents still have mixed feelings about their children going back to school.
On April 14, 2021, Governor Newson called for schools to reopen full-time.
“We must prepare now for full in-person instruction come this next school year. That’s foundational, and that’s principal,” Newsom said.
But the relief and joy students have going back to school may now be seen as worry and anxiety.
Since school has begun, positive cases and quarantine status have been going up. Many schools have welcomed back students full-time, but experts say that reopening full-time can put the staff and students at risk. In addition, while many schools require their staff and students to wear masks, many schools have lifted mask requirements and no longer need them.
The latest weekly count of cases ranges from around 243,000-245,000 confirmed cases. While the pandemic still affects the country, the yearly and upcoming flu season brings more possibilities students will get sick. Throughout students’ time back on campus, the flu can spread quickly and be a false positive for COVID.
In California, schools declare the classrooms will be among the safest in the nation. However, all teachers are required to wear a mask. Teachers and staff are also asked to receive the COVID-19 vaccine but can test for COVID-19 once a week if they do not want the shot. Today, there is no timeline from MUSD when teachers will receive their weekly tests or essential enough to push through to create safe environments. Another worry for students and their families.
“No, I don’t feel safe,” said Junior Oscar Bravo. “I don’t want to get sick while this disease is spreading around and can put me at risk. But, in my honest opinion, I feel like it’s too soon to be back.”
In this case, many students feel they’re at risk by coming back to school while Covid issues continue to increase.
“At first, I didn’t feel safe because students wouldn’t follow the school guideline rules,” said Junior Marua Henriquez. “They (students) were not wearing them masks when they needed to, and the teachers don’t sanitize their classrooms as well as they did before. I’m also very concerned because many people don’t practice social distancing anymore.”
Wearing a mask and staying sanitized, and distancing yourself have proven to be a way to lowering your risk. But, unfortunately, many people have gotten less responsible for doing those things.
“I’m always here for the students and their safety,” said campus monitor Susan. “It’s better to stay safe as possible and stay clean.”
Overall, many students don’t feel safe while being back, knowing that we are at risk. Even though some parents don’t want their children to go back, they understand that their children need to get an adequate education correctly. Our administrators and teachers want to work because they enjoy teaching and helping out their wonderful students. Over time, having students come back can benefit them when it comes to their education, but their health is just as important.
Sources contributing to this story can be found at: