Gadjah Mada University (UGM) epidemiologist Bayu Satria Wiratama said the decision to reopen should not be based only on COVID-19 risk zoning but also take into account a school’s preparedness and infrastructure. 

“Zoning is insufficiently accurate. Other parameters, such as the positivity rate, have to be factored in,” Bayu said in a statement made available to The Jakarta Post recently.

He added that the government’s plan to allow schools to resume face-to-face classroom activities was not the best decision for the time being, given the rising trend of new daily COVID-19 cases in the country.

He suggested that the government consider the epidemic conditions of each region as part of the effort to evaluate schools’ readiness for in-classroom activities. 

“For regions with low [COVID-19] cases, [a reopening of schools] may be considered,” he said.

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He added that classroom activities at school required a number of additional measures, such as daily monitoring of students’, teachers’ and parents’ health; shorter school hours; new sitting arrangements in classrooms and teachers’ rooms; and good ventilation.

To ensure the requirements are met, a detailed assessment was needed, especially for institutions of lower-level education, such as elementary schools and kindergartens, in order to make the students comply with health protocols. 

“Children in elementary school, and younger ones, are the most difficult to put masks on,” said Bayu.

He went on to say that central and local governments needed to continuously work together in the implementation of in-classroom learning for higher education institutions, especially in monitoring students who come from other regions. 

Upon arrival, the students should self-isolate for 14 days, he added.

Separately, UGM’s spokesperson Iva Ariani said that, so far, there had yet to be an official decision regarding face-to-face lecturing at UGM. Yet, should the university decide to reopen, everything would be conducted under strict health protocol.

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“But we cannot yet reveal details of the protocol and arrangements, because we are still discussing the matter,” she said, Tuesday.

Meanwhile, some teachers have warmly welcomed the idea of resuming classroom activities during the pandemic, saying that online teaching was very challenging, especially for kindergarten children.

“We do hope we are allowed to start face-to-face teaching and learning activities again, even if it’s just once a week, mainly to ensure a successful transfer of knowledge,” Sri Rusjiyanti, the headmaster of the TK ABA Mlangi kindergarten in Sleman, Yogyakarta, said on Monday.

She said she was optimistic that her students would follow the health rules under teachers’ guidance. 

The same hope was expressed by Imron Sayuti, a teacher at MTs Ali Maksum Islamic junior high school in Krapyak, Yogyakarta.

“Online teaching and learning activities are not effective, especially for character-building,” said Imron, adding that strict health protocol was non-negotiable when schools eventually reopen. (swa)

Editor’s note: This article is part of a public campaign by the COVID-19 task force to raise people’s awareness about the pandemic.