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Seventh graders in Lower Saxony in class (before the pandemic)
Photo: Julian Stratenschulte / DPA
Lower Saxony's Minister of Education, Grant Hendrik Tonne, pointed out the deprivation of children and young people in the corona crisis.
"We are currently taking everything away from the children that make up their lives: hobbies, meeting friends, going to events, going to the cinema, celebrating together," the SPD politician told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung: "And now we had to do that too Massively restrict school attendance - the last remaining opportunity to have contact with people of the same age - and reduce it to almost zero «.
It couldn't stay that way forever, said Tonne.
Nevertheless, he does not believe that the schools can be reopened quickly: "Nobody assumes that we will start normal school life again in February."
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In contrast, Frank Knieps, head of the Association of Company Health Insurance Funds, calls for a return to classroom teaching as quickly as possible.
"The state cannot accept that it depends on the budget or the improvisational talent of the parents whether the children get access to education," said Knieps of the editorial network Germany.
"We have to take the risk"
Lower Saxony's Minister of Culture, Grant Hendrik Tonne
“I have the impression that the political decision-makers cannot even imagine the situation for children in households with little education,” said Knieps, “that there are children there without computers, without support with learning, without hot lunches, but perhaps even with domestic violence . "
Knieps called on politicians not to rely solely on advice from science.
It is now known that children play a greater role in the infection process than previously thought.
"But we have to take the risk."
Nevertheless, he did not question the basic goal of reducing contacts.
"Because massive mistakes were made, we are now almost forced to try by all means to relieve the health care system."
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him / dpa
