Tasmanian students ready to return to school as coronavirus restrictions ease

Thousands of Tasmanian students will return to classrooms on Monday as part of a staged approach to the easing of restrictions.

THOUSANDS of Tasmanian students will return to classrooms across the state on Monday as coronavirus restrictions continue to ease.

About 46,000 government school students will be attending classes, following several weeks of home schooling, including 38,000 students from kinder to Grade 6 and a further 8000 in Years 11 and 12.

That’s in addition to the many non-government schools that will also return to in-class learning tomorrow, enabling students to finish the final six weeks of Term 2 alongside their peers.

MORE: COLLEGE STUDENTS TO UNDERTAKE MODIFIED CURRICULUM UPON RETURN TO SCHOOL

The return is part of a staged approach – the majority of 16,500 government school students in Years 7-10 are not scheduled to return to classrooms for another two weeks, on Tuesday, June 9.

Catholic schools are following the state guidelines, however some may opt to welcome high school students back before June 9. Arrangements for independent schools are available on each school’s website.

While the school routine won’t exactly return to “normal” just yet — with many activities still on hold and strict social distancing and hygiene measures in place — the transition back to face-to-face learning is expected to come as a relief to many parents, who have been juggling the demands of home schooling.

Student attendance fell to 7 per cent across public schools before Easter, after government advice to keep children home if possible. Some private schools were down to about 5 per cent and others closed completely.

Attendance figures have steadily risen in the past couple of weeks. Education Department data shows 21.5 per cent of students attended school in the week beginning May 4, while this jumped to 24.9 per cent the following week, with numbers likely to have increased again last week.

A department spokesman said safety was the top priority as students returned to school and extra measures — such as increased cleaning, strict handwashing protocols and enforced physical distancing where practical — had been put in place.

“Our schools are safe places, and extra precaution is being taken to ensure that everyone feels safe and comfortable to return,” the department said.

The department acknowledged the “hard work, patience and support” that parents and carers had provided while children were learning from home.

“The partnership between parents and teachers has been incredible, and everyone should be extremely proud of their efforts in such an unusual situation,’’ the spokesman said.

Education Minister Jeremy Rockliff said the Government was “committed to ensuring the smooth return of students to school” and was focused on “minimising any impacts on student learning caused by COVID-19 disruptions’’.

He said Year 11 and 12 students would work to a modified curriculum to ensure they were well prepared for sitting exams in November.

Little Archer ready to swap Lego for friends

Five-year-old Archer West can’t wait to get back to his classroom on Monday.

The prep student at Lansdowne Crescent Primary School has been homeschooled by his mum Danielle and dad Locky in recent weeks but is looking forward to being back with his peers and his teachers.

Lansdowne Crescent Primary School prep student Archer West, 5, of West Hobart. Picture: LUKE BOWDEN

Tasmania’s primary school and college students return to classes on Monday, followed by high school students in two weeks (Tuesday, June 9).

“I’m a bit nervous and a bit excited,’’ Archer said of returning to full-time school.

“I’ve missed playing with the games we have at school and seeing my friends.

“I liked doing school work at home but it’s easier to concentrate at school than at home because I get distracted by my Lego.’’

Mrs West said the West Hobart family largely enjoyed home schooling and it was nice to spend extra time together.

But it was difficult trying to juggle other commitments, as she works in real estate and her husband studies full-time at UTAS.

“We enjoyed home schooling but struggled with the time pressures of it,’’ she said.

“If all we had to do was teach Archer it would have been fantastic.

“But it was challenging trying to juggle working and studying full-time with giving Archer enough uninterrupted teaching time.

“I think that it will be good for him to get back to school with his friends … we are all definitely ready for school to return.”

Archer West with father Locky West. Picture: LUKE BOWDEN

Meanwhile, Police Minister Mark Shelton warned motorists to pay extra attention on Tasmanian roads as students returned to school.

He said since the ‘Stay at Home’ directive came into effect there had been a traffic reduction of up to 50 per cent on high-volume routes compared with the same period last year.