Schools around different states in Australia are deviating from the Federal government’s stand, and this is causing confusion.
Victoria’s schools will close from Tuesday, but NSW and Tasmanian schools would remain open.
On Sunday, Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison insisted that parents should send their children to school. “I don’t want to see our children lose an entire year of their education,” he said, but added that it was up to the states to decide whether or not to shut down educational institutions.
NSW Teachers Federation President Angelo Gavrielatos said the “government has an obligation to instruct those people to work from home or in some alternative setting that is safe”.
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He asked, “They are doing that for every other government department, why aren’t they doing it for schools?”
On social media, parents have expressed frustration.
NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian urged parents to keep children home from school as NSW virus cases soared. “Can a medical professional please confirm if children can spread the virus? It seems a very critical input into the schools debate,” another user said. Schools in NSW will remain open for working parents who have no option to keep children home.
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