In the US there has been a rule of thumb governing whether schools open or close: “All schools are required to close when at least 5% of staff and students test positive for Covid-19 within a 14-day period. School districts must close if one-quarter of schools in the districts are closed due to Covid-19 cases”, according to EdSource. In Europe things are done slightly differently. As reported by the New York Times “France, like much of Europe, has proved that it is possible to bring the rate of known infections down, even with schools open”. This European experience has been positive – though schools were closed during the first wave – and many reports (commented on in previous blogs) have shown that keeping schools open has helped to keep the rate of transmission low. The action has also helped allow parents of children at school to return to work. This evidence is now leading to a number of US regions to start to question the apparent wisdom currently used to govern these decisions. While keeping schools open might make the reduction in infections reduce at a slower rate the benefits can be felt not only in the continuity of education, but also in people’s mental health as well as the economy.
nytimes.com/2020/11/30/world/europe/france-covid-schools.html