Year 12s told to call for vax

Victorian year 12 students and teachers will be able to ring a dedicated hotline to get priority appointments at vaccination clinics. Here’s what you need to know.

Year 12 students and teachers will be able to book priority appointments at vaccination clinics via a dedicated hotline to be announced on Friday.

The phoneline will open for bookings on Monday, allowing final year students, teachers, VCE exam supervisors and assessors 24 hours to book first and second doses of the Covid vaccines before the blitz starts, the Herald Sun can reveal.

New Education Department guidelines show schools will provide masks for students next term and teachers will get time off to be vaccinated, although it will not be mandatory.

The vaccination blitz, announced by Premier Daniel Andrews this week, will begin on Tuesday September 7 and go until September 17.

Brother and sister Emily, 16, and Ben Sparrow, 18, waiting to get vaccinated. Picture: David Caird

Walk-in appointments won’t be available.

The Department of Health is also hosting a live webinar for year 12 students and families to provide information on vaccination, on September 3, from 4pm to 5pm. It will cover topics such as vaccine safety and how to book an appointment.

The guidelines also state that teachers will be given time off with pay to get vaccinated. Unlike NSW, they won’t be given a specific day off, but will negotiate a suitable time with their principal.

If teachers become unwell they will have to access personal leave.

More detail is also provided in the guidelines on the return of performance students to campus for their essential assessments.

Students must be tested for Covid within 72 hours of being onsite at school. They will not have to provide evidence of a negative test, but it may be requested by the school. Teachers attending on-site for the assessments are not required to be tested.

The Year 12 vaccination blitz will run from September 7 to September 17. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

The guidelines also state that schools are not responsible for ensuring authorised worker permit are valid and will not face any penalty if a child is allowed onsite but the permit is false.

Playgrounds on school sites will be available for community use after hours and will require a QR code. However, only outdoor markets can operate on school sites – no other use by community or sporting groups is permitted.

Face masks are mandatory for all senior school students and will be supplied by all schools for the first time. The Education Department is providing schools with 500 to 3000 single-use disposable masks to all schools.

Teachers and support staff are not required to wear face masks while teaching but it is recommended wherever practicable.

The guidelines also note that staff should avoid working across multiple sites, however, it notes that some may need to do so.

It’s understood further details about the operation of the General Achievement Test – the GAT – and examinations that start on October 4 will be provided to schools next week by the VCAA.

The Department of Education has encouraged VCE students to get the jab as soon as possible.

The GAT’s new date is October 5, raising fears among students that other exams will be pushed back.

A spokeswoman for the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority said VCE examinations will take place between 4 October – 17 November 2021 but exams held on October 5 will be rescheduled.

Associate Professor Caroline Dowling from the #VCEWhatsThePlanDan parents’ lobby group said she “commends the government on their plan. We look forward to their opportunities for on campus learning as soon as possible and the GAT and VCE/VCAL exams proceeding as scheduled”.

Meredith Peace, Australian Education Union Victorian Branch president, said she “welcomed this prioritisation of Year 12 students, teachers and examiners for COVID-19 vaccination, to provide the best opportunity for VCE exams to run as smoothly as possible”.

In a letter by Education Minister James Merlino sent to Year 12 students on Thursday, he said he wanted to thank students for their “extraordinary efforts and patience”.

He said students would be able to provide their teachers with information about how the

pandemic had impacted them through the submission of a Students Statement.

“This may include significant impacts such as school closures, long absences, dealing with substantial extra responsibilities at home, impacts on personal health … ongoing issues with remote learning and mental health challenges.”

A Department of Education spokesman said all Victorian teachers and school staff were now eligible for a coronavirus vaccination.

“We encourage them all to get the jab as soon as possible to protect themselves, their school communities, and get Victoria closer to our vaccination targets,” he said.