The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released their guidelines for reopening classrooms and it includes a heavy emphasis on students getting back into the classrooms.
What We Know:
- With schools reopening just weeks away, the CDC released its guidelines on Thursday to advise of the social, emotional, and mental risk of keeping students home. In-person learning maintains developmental and emotional skills, supplies educational instruction, generates a safe environment for learning, providing physical activity.
- Some of the country’s largest school districts have already stated they will not be bringing students back into classrooms and are instead choosing to operate remotely for the beginning of the school year.
- Their guidelines provide outlines on how to recommence in-person school settings in a safe manner.
- As far as keeping everyone safe, the CDC has recommended people adhere to practicing good hygiene, sanitizing surfaces regularly, and also spacing out students to maintain social distancing. They should maintain social distancing by moving classes to outside settings, keeping groups of classes together throughout the day, enforcing the use of face masks, and having proper ventilation
- It is also imperative that schools have a plan to follow protocol when students or staff get sick. Chances of a health or physical risk may arise for children that may be returning who are affected with any underlying conditions.
“Schools can determine, in collaboration with state and local health officials to the extent possible, whether and how to implement these considerations while adjusting to meet the local community’s unique needs and circumstances,” CDC guidelines say.
Overall, for schools to reopen as safely as possible, assertive steps have to be taken into continuing slowing down the spread of COVID-19. Although it will not put an end to it, there is still time to minimize the spread, public health experts say. We are always hoping for the best outcome.
