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| Photo: alessandro di marco/Shutterstock |
Most of Europe sees large downsides to shutting schools again, despite the risk of more infections
While schools in some U.S. states are going back to remote learning, European countries are mostly persevering with open schools despite high coronavirus infection rates, believing—for now—that the cost to children of closing classrooms outweighs the health risks.
In parts of the U.S., many schools that shut down in the spring never reopened, and others are closing again. New York City is also poised to close schools if cases continue to rise.
By contrast, by the end of September schools across Europe had reopened, and most governments are determined to keep it that way—even though the continent is grappling with a powerful second wave of infections.
Part of the reason is that it is unclear how effective closing schools really is, with scientific studies reaching different conclusions about how important students and teachers are in driving contagion. Meanwhile, policy makers have concluded that the social damage caused by prolonged school closures was too much to bear, particularly for less-privileged families with working parents.
French Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer pushed for schools to reopen quickly at the end of the lockdown in the spring, saying the social and economic cost of missing class was too high. When France went into a nationwide lockdown in late October, with all nonessential businesses forced to shut, the government kept schools open. --->READ MORE HERE
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| AP Photo/Andrew Harnik |
The coronavirus pandemic was on voters’ minds when they cast their ballots for president on November 3 and exit polls show that a large percentage — 61 percent — thought it the most important issue facing the country. Joe Biden made Trump the issue, heavily criticizing the president for everything from his initial response to the pandemic to his ignoring “the science” and refusing to develop a “national policy” on the government’s response.
Now it will be Joe Biden who sits in the big chair and decides how the nation responds to the crisis. What will he do differently than Trump?
The short answer is “everything.”
Joe Biden will not have an original idea in his head about how to respond to the pandemic. He will put “science” (public health bureaucrats) in charge and let them have their way with America. It won’t be pretty.
He will self-consciously and deliberately become the “anti-Trump” of pandemic response. Anything Trump did — or didn’t do — he will do the opposite. If he doesn’t, his base of anti-Trump hysterics will have his head on a pike.
But maybe that’s a good thing, right? Maybe we should put science in charge and let the government take over our lives, telling us when we can go outside, when we need to stay indoors, and when to close our businesses.
After all, Biden is the “expert,” isn’t he? --->READ MORE HEREFollow links below to related stories and resources:
Collateral Damage? CDC Admits COVID Lockdowns Sparked Surge In Children's Mental Health Issues
COVID-19 may have been in Italy as early as September 2019: study
USA TODAY: Coronavirus Updates
WSJ: Coronavirus Live Updates
YAHOO NEWS: Coronavirus Live Updates
NEW YORK POST: Coronavirus The Latest
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