Schools are being "excessively risk-averse" in their approach to Covid-19 in a policy that is damaging children's education, according to a team of specialists.
European governments need to undertake an "urgent rethink" of policies designed to contain coronavirus to avoid widespread school closures this winter, children's infectious disease experts said.
They said the effects of missed lessons on children’s mental health and education during the first wave of the virus far outweighed the benefits of shutting schools.
"The default position for primary schools should be the implementation of less restrictive infection control requirements," the medics wrote in the British Medical Journal paper published on Sunday.
This would include not enforcing compulsory mask-wearing, no requirement for entire bubbles to isolate after a single case at school, and for teachers to be a priority for the Covid-19 vaccine.
The blanket policy used in Europe for children of all ages is “not evidence based and is too restrictive and inflexible”, said the report, published online in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.
It could also significantly disadvantage primary school pupils and their families.
School policies across Europe made no distinction between primary and secondary school, "despite the known differences in the risks of infection and spread in these two age groups".
With no provision to tighten or relax restrictions in secondary and primary schools, the younger children could be severely hampered.
“That’s because young children get between 4 and 8 respiratory infections every winter and the symptoms of a bad cold or other viral infection often overlap with those of Covid-19,” the report said.
“And if it’s difficult to get a test or takes a while to get a result, young children will inevitably miss significant quantities of schooling this winter.”
The recommendation in some European countries, including Britain, for an entire family to isolate if a child has coronavirus symptoms while awaiting their test results limits parents’ ability to work and pupils’ freedom to attend school.
The report called for a more “pragmatic, evidence-based approach to primary schools”, which recognised the unintended consequences of “excessively risk-averse approaches”.
It also recommended that schools should be prioritised for rapid Covid-19 saliva tests.
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
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New Zealand squad
Tim Southee (capt), Trent Boult (games 4 and 5), Colin de Grandhomme, Lockie Ferguson (games 1-3), Martin Guptill, Scott Kuggeleijn, Daryl Mitchell, Colin Munro, Jimmy Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Ross Taylor, Blair Tickner
