Experts say that the return to school would be gradual, rather than a wholesale lifting of the lockdown.

But at the same time, few are worried whether or not to send their kids back to school even for a number of days.

We are going to look at what some of these parents have to say:

Before we go into that though, I want you to know that we will be grouping these parents into 3 classes:

Classes 1: Parents who believe that kids must not go back to school.

Classes 2: Parents who believe that kids must go back to school.

Classes 3: Parents who believe that certain conditions must be met before school can reopen.

Now let us take a look at what these parents have to say:

Classes 1 Parent

Nancy is a therapist and she has two children who attend international School in Accra. Although the kids love their school, Nancy and her husband have decided that they won’t be sending them to school at least for now.

She said “My older son and I both have asthma, and we don’t feel comfortable taking that risk. The schools administration is awesome. Their teachers are the best. But I know they even struggled with keeping the school as clean and sanitized as it needed to be just with the regular flu season. To us, putting our kids in school would be concerning.”

Both spouses are able to work from home, and it won’t be easy, But Nancy said until there is a vaccine for the coronavirus, we can’t foresee when our kids will be ready to go back to the classroom amid the global coronavirus pandemic that continues to sweep nations.

These couples aren’t alone.

According to research conducted, a lot of parents are concerned about sending their kids back to the traditional school.

Another parent by name Gladys who is a beautician said “There is absolutely no way that I will be sending my child to school until there is a proven vaccine for COVID-19.

There is no way I would ever put my child in danger like that when it can most definitely be avoided.”

Cynthia put it this way: “I have seen big progress and attitudes changing with the e-learning from home. I think we should have the choice of continuing to keep them home with e-learning,”

She continues: “I hope that the government will boost virtual options for students that will allow those at home to stay engaged with their classmates at their local schools.”

Classes 2 Parent
Parents in this class argue that schools need to reopen so society can get back to normal.

Parents need to get back to work and children need places to go.

In our present day society, the truth is that we cannot live without the school system because the way kids learn and are cared has changed.

When both moms and dads work, who takes care of the kids?

When both mom and dad work, who teaches the kids at home?

It is true that most schools are now resorting to online tuition but for most students, this just doesn’t work.

Most students around the world don’t have access to the internet at home.

With the online lessons, many teachers felt their attempts to reach their students were successful while schools were closed but they also admit that academic engagement was low.

Educators are also concerned about the widening gaps for more vulnerable populations such as students with disabilities, English language learners or students who are already behind.

A special education teacher recently interviewed said “School is for learning, home is home, and they did not engage no matter how hard the parents tried. Many of our special populations of [English language learners] or exceptional education students in the younger grades struggled without a multi-sensory, hands-on-learning environment. I ended up sending home individualized packets of worksheets to maintain learning, not new concepts. Those students benefit from in-class, face-to-face, hands-on instruction.”

Another thing also very important to point out is that even when parents are present for their children, they often aren’t always helpful when it comes to schoolwork.

Faustina in a tweet said “My son was studying DNA sequencing when schools closed, so, I had to study DNA with him at the same time. How can I home-school him if I have no idea of the subject at hand?”

Classes 3 Parent
Parents in this class want their kids to go back to school but they believe a variety of options should be available and certain criteria must be met.
Mary a mother of two recently said “Schools should reopen when contact tracing is available to all schools, and all schools are capable of detecting symptoms of sick students, such as high body temperature. Immediate publicly-funded help must be made available to all school students who exhibit any symptoms of sickness before they are allowed into school facilities,”

Another parent by name Jonas put it in this way “Our schools will not be able to return to ‘normal.’ We will need to create a new normal that takes into account individual student needs. Some students thrived on self-paced virtual learning, some students need the classroom and direct instruction, Education should never be a one-size-fits-all model.”

For those working from home, listen to what Nancy has to say “working from home in order to keep kids out of school is not an option available to everyone. I recognize that we have a lot of privilege that allows us to make that decision, since we both are able to work from home,” she said. “I’m thankful that our kids are a bit older, going into fourth and fifth grade they’re able to work a little bit more independently.”

She also hopes that other parents who can keep their children at home also do, so that social distancing and other recommendations for keeping schools safe will be easier.

“If my children aren’t in school that makes it easier for those whose parents don’t have any option to practise social distancing.”

She continues “Our family just feels strongly that we want to be part of the solution, we are prepared to do whatever we need to do as long as we need to do it.”

Conclusion
Someone ones said ‘Close the doors to schools and you’ve open doors to the prisons.’ That shows how important our school system is.
But will you allow your child to go to school amid this pandemic?
Which class of parent do you consider yourself to be?
Leave a comment below and let us know what you think.
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