Schools can safely reopen during the COVID-19 pandemic — and must do so with “extreme urgency” or risk lasting damage to kids across the nation, that will be presented to members of Congress on Friday.
The report, written by John P. Bailey, a former deputy policy director at the Departm🦹ent of Commerce, examined more tha💞n 130 studies on reopening schools and concluded that that the longer they are closed, the greater kids suffer.
Those risks include academic loss that could set kids back for life, as well as mental health problems concerning loneliness and i𝄹solation, according to the report, commissioned by the Walton Family Foundation, American Enterprise Institute and five other nonprofits.
“Severe learning loss for many children, particularly children of color, will lead to lower educational attainment and lower future earnings,” Bailey warned.
But while school distric🅺ts needed to be cautious initia𒀰lly amid health uncertainties and political pressures, our understanding of the pandemic and its effect on children has now evolved significantly, he said.
“One year later, however, a growing body of medical research and the firsthand experiences of school systems worldwide can provide a sound basis for determining a reopening strategy,” Bailey wrote.
Many school districts across the country — including in New York City — have seen a disturbing trend of student s💞uicides as the global health crisis cont🧜inues to play out.
To address this, Mayor Bill de Blasio staggered the reopening of schools by grade level this year — but roughly 70 percent of kids in the nation’s largest school system are still learning on a fully remote basis.
De Blasio has vowed to fully reopen schools next year — but incoming chancellor Meisha Ross Porter has noted that the decision will ultimately hinge on the state of the pandemic in September.
In addition to the damaging effects on children, the report also noted the hardship parents have faced over closed schools — noting two million mothers have been forced to quit their jobs to deal with remote learning and childcare.
The comprehensive analysis ultimately concludes that schools can s𒐪afely reopen to students and teachers so long as protocols such as hand washing, social distancing and proper ventilation are in pla🦄ce.
“Schools are not 🤪super-spreaders,” Bailey insists in the report, which will be pres🗹ented to the House Committee on Education and Labor on Friday.
“Emerging evidence suggests that while there is some transmission with children, they are not the super-spreaders they tend to be with other respiratory infections.”
The report stressed that reopenings in several European nations did noᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚt spa𝓰rk widespread outbreaks.
And a study by the Chicago Department of Public Health, which is und😼erscored in the report, actually found a lower COVID-19 infection rate in Chicago Archdiocese schools compared to the overall infection rate in chi🐼ldren.
Archdiocese schools reopened in the fall — with requirements in p꧂lace including masking, social distancing and daily symptom and temperature checks — while the public school system has remained closed.
“The estimated COVID attack rate among students atꦇ Archdiocese schools was 0.2% — significantly lower than the 0.4% rate for all Chicago children,” Bailey said.
Test scores also showed that Archdiocese students made academic gains, while public school students ꦚlagged.
The findings back guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last month that schools can safely reopen under a phased system.
“Many of the trade-offs [of closures] — steep learning loss, declines in mental health, and the economic impact on families — will have far-reaching consequences that could last for years beyond the pandemic,” the report warned.
