Students to return to remote learning in parents' winter of discontent - The Age

Just over 30,000 tests were done yesterday.

"There is nothing more important than coming forward if you've got even mild symptoms, so that we can get your test results, we can work out where the virus is," Mr Andrews said.

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With Melbourne and Mitchell Shire in stage three lockdown, the government has chosen to revert to remote learning to minimise the movement of children and their parents throughout the community.

Students in year 11 and 12, and in specialist schools, will return to face-to-face learning tomorrow, as will year 10 students taking VCE and VCAL classes.

But the rest of the state – some 700,000 students – will return to remote learning for at least six weeks, following an extra week of school holidays this week.

Mr Andrews said there was "simply no alternative but to go this footing" if the lockdown is to achieve its goal of suppressing transmission of the virus.

"We can't have the best part of 700,000 students, as well as parents moving to and from school, roaming around the community as if there wasn't a stay at home order or as if there wasn't a lockdown," Mr Andrews said.

"That'll put at direct risk us achieving our aim and that of course is to drive these numbers down at the end of the six-week period."

Mr Andrews said he expected that Catholic and indepenent schools would follow the same remote learning regime.

Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said it would have been irresponsible of him to send all students back to schools, given the state faces the biggest health crisis since the Spanish flu pandemic a century ago.

He said it was possible the pandemic had not yet peaked in Victoria.

“We have to throw absolutely everything at it; it’s the biggest public health challenge of our lifetime,” Professor Sutton said.

“It would have been irresponsible of me to have gone into a phase where we might even have increasing numbers day on day, to have kids going back to school.”

He said masks were useful in classrooms, but all students should stay home if they feel sick.

“I would make it clear that students who are unwell shouldn’t be in the classroom,” Professor Sutton said.

Early childhood education will remain open as normal.

Schools outside of lockdown zones will also open as normal this week.

All teachers and school staff will attend schools this week, and from July 20 the default setting will be that staff will attend school, flipping last term's arrangement where most teachers worked remotely.

Staff who are vulnerable will be permitted to work remotely, however Profesor Sutton said it was not appropriate for teachers towear masks while in the classroom.

“Teaching is pretty tough with a mask on, they require those facial expressions they need to be heard clearly," he said.

More to come...

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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMihgFodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGVhZ2UuY29tLmF1L25hdGlvbmFsL3ZpY3RvcmlhL3N0dWRlbnRzLXRvLXJldHVybi10by1yZW1vdGUtbGVhcm5pbmctaW4tcGFyZW50cy13aW50ZXItb2YtZGlzY29udGVudC0yMDIwMDcxMi1wNTViYTguaHRtbNIBhgFodHRwczovL2FtcC50aGVhZ2UuY29tLmF1L25hdGlvbmFsL3ZpY3RvcmlhL3N0dWRlbnRzLXRvLXJldHVybi10by1yZW1vdGUtbGVhcm5pbmctaW4tcGFyZW50cy13aW50ZXItb2YtZGlzY29udGVudC0yMDIwMDcxMi1wNTViYTguaHRtbA?oc=5

2020-07-12 01:11:00Z
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