Lack of clear messaging on school closures leaves parents, students frustrated

A parent walks a young student to school. Picture: AAP

Thanks for nothing, guys. Everyone knows that when grappling with wilful offspring unity is key, but this morning’s clusterjam of competing messages over school closures left me with nothing in my arsenal.

All teenagers are stubborn and rebellious but I’m surely that rare parent whose daughter stubbornly insisted on rebelling against my wishes — by going to school.

My 14-year-old is conscientious, focused, and thrives in a structured environment. Her comfort zone is one with clearly delineated borders.

So when I told her she should join the rest of the family in self-isolating, she naturally wanted to know what the authorities said. Not what they advised or recommended or wishy-washily supposed. What was the directive? Were the schools closed or not?

Well, er …

Clear, consistent messaging — it’s a no-brainer whether you’re bringing up kids or wrangling a scared, confused and divided populace.

But in the absence of timely, uniform government direction, I was stranded on an island of uncertainty armed only with the ineffectual. You don’t go up against a keen teen mind with “Because I said so.”

We’d been monitoring the situation from Sunday, when Victorian premier Daniel Andrews first went rogue, announcing school closures and a lockdown of non-essential services.

I was all for it. I have neither science nor medical qualifications. I do have a commitment to flattening the curve and an atavistic instinct that says I want my kids here, at home, where I can at least fight the virus on home turf.

We’re in Sydney, so we awaited NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian’s edict. She signalled an intention to align with Victoria, but would have “more to say” about schools on Monday morning. Following the meeting of the national cabinet Sunday night, Prime Minister Scott Morrison insisted schools needed to remain open.

-

“We went to bed at loggerheads: I wanted my teenager home; she didn’t want to fall behind in her schoolwork.”

-

Monday morning brought an orgy of doublethink. Schools would close in Victoria and the ACT on Tuesday. Berejiklian said NSW schools would be open but advised parents to keep their children home. Morrison’s message was: parents should send kids to school but it was okay if they didn’t.

My daughter came downstairs in her school uniform, defiance in her eyes. I cajoled. I resorted to mum jokes: “You can become a quaran-teen!”

I threatened, but weakly, with no official backup. In the end, I had to concede the point: who was I to stand in the way of her diligence and commitment to her studies?

My daughter no doubt felt the thrill of insurrection. And as she headed out the door, socks pulled up, collar neatly pressed, it did indeed look a lot like anarchy.