School attendance will rise in Term 2, Steven Marshall says
Schools will see a return to face-to-face education next term, Premier Steven Marshall says, as a new federal program aims to get laptops and NBN connections to needy kids.
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School attendance rates are set to rise in Term 2 in “a return to face-to-face education”, Premier Steven Marshall says.
State and territory governments yesterday agreed to a set of principles, including that classroom teaching is the ideal, but acknowledged the need for remote learning options during the pandemic.
To that end, the Federal Government will today announce NBN Co will provide $150 million to internet providers, so they can help more families and businesses access the internet.
Of that, $50 million will subsidise internet access for low-income families with school-aged children, many of whom will be learning from home in Term 2.
“This is intended to help make education accessible to all Australian students who are home schooling in response to social-distancing measures,” Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said.
The Advertiser yesterday revealed that parent surveys near the end of Term 1 showed a third of students would be in classrooms in Term 2, similar to rates at the end of Term 1. But Mr Marshall said attendance would rise.
“It is fair to say most jurisdictions are now believing we are moving towards a soft start in Term 2, but building that attendance throughout Term 2 and a return to face-to-face education,” he said.
“It is safe for students to go there. We have had millions of student days, if you like, in Term 1. We’ve no example of student-to-student transmission, no example of student-to-teacher transmission, and just one single case of a teacher-to-student transmission, so extraordinarily low transmission rates at school.
“If I had children ... I would be sending them to school. I know some parents feel anxious and that is why we have an alternative model in place, but students are safe to be going to school.”
The Australian Education Union’s SA branch said it endorsed schools staying open for children of essential workers and at-risk children but asked that “all other parents keep their children home”, citing health fears for staff.
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Prime Minister Scott Morrison insisted schools were safe.
“Teachers are more at risk in the staffroom than they are in the classroom,” he said.
“We need to have proper arrangements in place for teachers and other staff in schools, obviously, to protect their work environment. But at the same time that doesn’t lead to the same rules applying for students because they have a different level of risk.”
Australia’s chief medical officer Brendan Murphy said it was recommended older teachers and teachers with chronic disease not work in the classroom.
SA Education Minister John Gardner said the expert health advice to national Cabinet “should provide reassurance and confidence to parents that schools are low risk environments for their children”.