ALTHOUGH the number of new Covid-19 cases has stayed above 2,000 in the last week, parent and teacher groups are still against closing all schools as they fear the children will lag too far behind in their studies.

They said better options than a blanket closure would be to give parents the freedom to decide whether their children should continue with physical classes and for closures to be done according to the severity of Covid-19 infections in a given location.

Children are already behind in their studies after physical school stayed closed for most of last year during lockdowns, and online classes have not been effective for everyone, said the Parent Action Group for Education Malaysia.

Its chairman, Noor Azimah Abdul Rahim, said schools should be closed only if there is a severe spike in cases. 

“Shut schools only when the need arises. As long as there are teachers to run the schools, they should remain open. 

“Let parents decide if they want to send their children to school,” she told The Malaysian Insight, adding that parents must be reminded to limit their movements outside the home to prevent bringing infections to school.

“Keep children in school as too much learning has been lost. Adhere strictly to school standard operating procedure (SOP).

“Tighten SOP. The people need to be advised to limit movement and consider staying home as much as they can.”

Noor Azimah is also against extending the Hari Raya holidays due next month, as community transmissions of the virus is current among the reasons for its spread. There have also been recent Covid-19 clusters that started from social gatherings.

Covid-19 clusters involving education centres, including schools, have doubled in a two-week period as of April 17.

More than 80 such clusters have been detected since January until April 20.

Schools in Selangor and Johor have also had to close after positive cases were detected among staff and students.

In Johor, 27 schools were closed on Wednesday, comprising 10 religious schools and 17 primary, secondary and vernacular schools.

In Selangor, 19 schools were closed early last week in the Petaling district.

Malacca Action Group for Parents in Education chairman Mak Chee Kin said although parents are worried about the safety of their children, closing schools should be the last resort.

He said schools are already taking sufficient measures to prevent infections, including limiting students’ movement within the school, only allowing them to leave classrooms for toilet breaks.

“Schools have also barred the entry of outsiders, including members of the Parent-Teacher Association),” he said.

“It is the community who needs to be disciplined to prevent the spike (in infections).”

He also called on police or local authorities to disperse parents who gather to chit chat outside the schools. 

“Some parents come very early to wait for their children and will chat, but the teachers cannot do anything. Now is the time for everyone to cooperate with the school authorities to ensure that the students are safe.”

Mak said the benefits of physical school outweigh that of online classes.

“Poor internet connectivity, access to gadgets, lack of a conducive learning environment and inability to focus are among the downsides attributed to online learning.”

Ministry hasn’t engaged teachers

National Union of the Teaching Profession (NUTP) secretary-general Harry Tan said the government must engage with the teachers at the grassroots level to come out with more workable solutions and prevent controversies.

“NUTP, which represents more than 200,000 teachers, has not been asked for its opinion by the Education Ministry on how best they can handle the pandemic,” he said.

He added that they do not advocate a total shutdown but only where safety is most needed.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Public Health Physicians’ Association president Dr Zainal Ariffin Omar said the Education Ministry should plan alternatives such as conducting classes on rotation, limiting the number of students and hours of physical lessons, besides holding hybrid (physical and online simultaneously) classes.

Such preparations are needed should there be a further spike in Covid-19 cases.

“Cases could increase after Hari Raya festivities,” he cautioned.

School closures should be the last resort, he said, and only if there are a significant number of cases and clusters from a particular school. 

“The Health and Education Ministries should also enlist their district offices to conduct the necessary risk analyses to undertake appropriate intervention,” he said.

The lack of planning and poor communication by the Education Ministry have prompted calls by opposition MPs for minister Mohd Radzi Jidin and his deputies to resign.

The lawmakers said poor and hasty planning has caused parents, teachers and students to scramble between home-based learning and physical classes at short notice. 

They also highlighted the lack of proper explanation on protocols and measures in the “new normal” for schools in the event of fresh infections.

Deputy Education Minister Mah Hang Soon was reported to have told a Chinese newspaper last week that schools with Covid-19 cases must close for two days and conduct online lessons instead.

However, the ministry was criticised for not making a proper announcement on a matter that affects all schools. – April 25, 2021.