Back to school on 19 April: Is it too soon for small children?

Opinions vary widely on the reopening of schools in Hungary on 19 April. Although many consider it essential to restart face-to-face education, Zsolt Boldogkői, a molecular biologist, and the ADOM Student Movement beg to differ.

Hungarians are divided over the government’s policy decreeing the recommencement of education with personal attendance in primary and secondary schools from 19 April (more details about the reopening here). Zsolt Boldogkői, Doctor of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA) and head of the Department of Medical Biology at the University of Szeged, declared in an interview that it would be premature to let students back into the classrooms due to the still serious pandemic situation in Hungary. The molecular biologist called for the

postponement of the reopening for 3-4 weeks, but the ideal solution would be to return to traditional learning only at the beginning of September.

As the vaccination of children has not started yet, the younger generations are likely to act as vectors and may take the virus home with them from school. Portfolio remarks that the British COVID variant is judged to be equally dangerous for the young. According to György Velkey, director-general at the Bethesda Children’s Hospital, the number of patients currently admitted is 2-3 times as many as during the previous waves of the pandemic. Additionally, vaccinated teachers may not be able to develop sufficient immunity by the resumption of the school term.

The ADOM Movement (Alternative Student-Centered Education Movement) also chose to oppose the enforcement of the decision publicly. In their announcement on Facebook, the student movement contends that the reopening of schools would endanger the lives of their teachers, parents, grandparents, and classmates with underlying health issues. The students suggest that digital learning should be maintained in secondary schools until teachers who received the COVID shot are completely protected. Furthermore, they spoke out against compulsory attendance in primary school, highlighting that, in the case of children who cannot be supervised by the parents at home, social distancing must be observed in classrooms more carefully. They find it absurd that strict measures are introduced for ensuring the safety of customers in shops (1 person / 10 square meters), yet schools are exempt from such regulations. The school environment would pose a threat to students preparing for their school-leaving exams since they could be quarantined at the time of the written tests.