NSW schoolkids revert to ‘learning from home’ amid rise in Covid cases

Four NSW schools have this week partially reverted to online learning from home, sending parents’ plans into chaos. A health expert has described the shut-outs as “completely inappropriate”.

Parents, educators and health experts have lashed out against Covid protections for NSW schools which are still seeing healthy kids told to stay home, throwing parents’ work lives into chaos despite the World Health Organisation declaring the virus no longer a global emergency.

Four NSW public schools have this week notified parents that a portion of the school would be reverting to learning from home under departmental direction.

Seven classes at Braddock Public School in Cranebrook, and students in years 3-6 at Toongabbie East Public School — who have since resumed in-person learning — were affected.

One class at Pelican Flat Public School on the Central Coast has also been hit with a direction to stay home where possible.

All students at Mitchells Island Public School — a small school of 45 students on Mid North Coast — have been asked to stay home due to Covid infections among staff and students.

Students in four grades at Braddock PS have been asked to stay home for at least the remainder of the week.

Confused and frustrated parents at Braddock PS took to social media raising concerns about how they would accommodate keeping their kids home at short notice.

A mum, who did not wish to use her name, told The Daily Telegraph her 9-year-old daughter had become riddled with “extreme anxiety” after hearing she’d have to go back to home learning yet again, “especially when (the students) were assured it would never happen again”.

Notification to parents at Braddock Public School, uploaded to social media and later deleted.

“It definitely caught us off guard,” the mum at Braddock PS said.

“We were told the cases were rising within the school, but I didn’t realise how extreme it was.

“We were only contacted via email (and) social media platforms which really bugged me. A phone call and explanation would have been nice. The school is normally very good with communication and support, however this time round I feel let down.”

The girl’s parents, who both work full time, have arranged for her to stay with her grandparents – and attend her grandfather’s cancer treatments as a result – for the rest of the week.

Students at Toongabbie East Public School were asked to stay home this week due to Covid cases at the school, but have now resumed normal classes. Picture: David Swift

“If they extend the directive to stay home next week we will have no option but to send her to school, which will only disrupt her further due to no structure,” the mum said.

It is understood schools are regularly placed under learn from home directions upon departmental advice.

Opposition spokesperson and previous education minister Sarah Mitchell said keeping children in classrooms must be a priority for the Labor government.

“We all know how disruptive Covid has been for students and families over the past few years,” she said.

“I would hope the new Education Minister is considering the most up to date health advice when making these decisions.”

ANU infectious diseases expert Professor Peter Collignon said the time for school shutdowns and home learning is over, and described such measures as “completely inappropriate” and “out of proportion”.

“This is not the time for significant restrictions. If the restrictions mean (students) have to wear masks, or are such that the contacts of infected students are excluded from their schooling, that time has more than truly passed,” Professor Collignon said.

“Children in particular have much less of a risk from the virus than adults … and they face deleterious side effects socially by not interacting with their peers.”

Infectious Diseases physician and microbiologist Dr Peter Collignon at the Senate Inquiry into COVID-19 at Parliament House in Canberra in 2020. Picture: AAP Image/Mick Tsikas

Education Minister Prue Car told a Sydney radio station the health precautions are “less than ideal”, but said they remain necessary to protect schoolkids under expert advice – especially vulnerable students such as those with disabilities and special learning needs.

“It’s an absolute last resort, and there’s absolutely no way we want to be closing schools,” she said.

“We know how difficult learning from home was for everyone that had to do it when we were in the darkest days of Covid.

“In some cases, there are teachers that are out with Covid and we’re also dealing with a chronic teacher shortage which means that it’s even harder for the schools to cope.”

NSW Deputy Premier and Education Minister Prue Car said the partial closures are “an absolute last resort”. Picture: Tim Hunter

A spokesperson for the NSW Department of Education confirmed there is supervision available for kids at all three schools where learn-from-home directions are currently in place, for those who can’t stay home. They will also undertake online learning along with their peers at home.

“The best place for our students is the classroom. We must balance this with the health, safety and wellbeing of students and school staff,” the spokesperson said.

“After careful consideration, the department may ask some year groups in schools to learn from home for short periods of time due to a large number of COVID-19 cases as a circuit-breaker.

“Face-to-face learning continues for unaffected year groups and for affected students who are unable to learn from home.”

The Department was unable to confirm how many Covid cases are known to be active at each school, citing privacy reasons.

Pelican Flat, a small school with around 80 students, has also been affected. Picture: Google

A Western Sydney school principal not authorised to speak out publicly said he’s aware of multiple schools where mass outbreaks have forced schools to close due to lack of staff, but said non-infected students should be kept at school as much as possible.

“We shouldn’t be shutting the whole school down unless you’ve got a genuine outbreak across the whole school,” he said.

“Something needs to happen. There needs to be guidance for schools around different scenarios with sending kids home, and the scenarios need to be linked to the level of the outbreak.

“At my school we just send the kid who has COVID home, and we’ve been sending plenty.”

Last Friday (May 5) the World Health Organisation confirmed Covid remains an “ongoing health issue” but “no longer constitutes a public health emergency of international concern”, in the United Nation agency’s view.

“With great hope I declare COVID-19 over as a global health emergency,” WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.