Social distance, bubbles, breaks and what happens if there are contagions: the details of the City's proposal to teachers

01/28/2021 4:37 PM

• Clarín.com

• Cities

Updated 01/28/2021 4:45 PM

The Government of the City of Buenos Aires presented this Thursday a draft of what will be

the proposal to teachers for the return of face-to-face classes as of February 17

.

There he establishes the protocols, explains the bubble system that will be applied and details the responsibilities of the school personnel.

In the document that

Clarín

had access to

, the Government of Horacio Rodríguez Larreta clarifies that the proposal is based "on the recommendations made to date by the Ministry of Health."

And it clarifies that these recommendations "are under permanent review, and

may be expanded or modified

according to the changes that arise with respect to the epidemiological situation and any other directive emanating from the authorities of the Government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires."

Dates for the return

The first point of the draft details the dates of the return to the classrooms, something that Horacio Rodríguez Larreta had already announced: the first to do so will be the Beginning Level students (from 45 days to 5 years of age, including the Special Education Mode) , the students of the First Cycle of Primary Level and Special Education and those of the Basic Cycle and First Cycle of the Technical Professional Modality, of Secondary Level.

All of them will do it on February 17.

On the 22nd of the same month, the students of the Second Cycle of Primary Level and those of the Second Cycle of the Special Education Modality will return.

Meanwhile, on March 1, the students of the Oriented Cycle and Second Cycle of the Technical Professional Modality of Secondary Level and the remaining students of the Special Education Modality will return.

A week later, on March 8, it will be the turn of the students of the Youth and Adult Education Modality.

Finally, on the 22nd of the same month, the Higher Level students will return.

"For the Initial, Primary and Secondary Levels, students must attend classes in person, from Monday to Friday, with a minimum school day of 3 hours for the initial level and 4 hours for the remaining levels".

the document warns.

"These face-to-face instances will be complemented by instances of remote pedagogical continuity," he adds.

The excepted 

The draft also highlights that

"all teaching and non-teaching staff will be summoned"

, but it clarifies that "students who are part of any of the risk groups" or who "live with a person with comorbidity associated with COVID-19 ", may be exempted from attending" in person at the educational establishment ", having to present the corresponding medical certificate and / or accredit coexistence depending on the case.

For these groups of students "remote alternatives will be provided to guarantee pedagogical continuity."

Workers who are part of risk groups will

also

be exempted

.

Pregnant workers are also included there.

Regarding schools,

each establishment "must establish an internal organization plan

to guarantee the greatest possible presence."

For this they will have the support of technical teams and supervision of the Ministry of Education.

Within the buildings

, social distancing

"of at least 1.5 meters"

must be respected

and it will be mandatory "for entry and stay" to wear a mask "at all times".

Children under 2 years of age are exempted from wearing a mask and the difficulty of being able to maintain their distance in this group is contemplated.

All protocols

Boys from 3 to 5-year-old wards, meanwhile, must wear the mask if they have "sufficient autonomy to put it on and take it off by their own means" except to eat, drink or perform physical activity.

For students of the special modality who, "due to their sensory profile or other specific characteristic related to the disability condition, are not in a position to use the mask during the entire school day", the other prevention measures must be taken to the extreme.

Meanwhile, teachers "must use, during the course of the classes, a face mask and a face mask", while "non-teaching personnel must use the protection elements that are necessary according to the type of activity to be carried out."

In addition, "the

temperature of all the people who enter

the educational establishment should be taken" with an infrared thermometer that does not involve contact with the skin and explanations will be given so that the children know, among other things, how they should wash their hands with water and soap.

For its part, the City Government ensures that "for the opening of educational establishments" a series of actions were carried out such as "marking of spaces", "conditioning of physical spaces for isolation, preferably with a door , window and own bathroom ", the" placement of posters that provide information regarding the measures and protocols in force "and the" sufficient supply of supplies for hand hygiene, containers / dispensers with gel alcohol and cleaning and disinfection elements " .

The document also establishes how the spaces should be sanitized and with what frequency, both for the places occupied by the boys of the initial level as well as those of the rest.

In addition, it is clarified that

"the use of elevators" will be restricted,

which "may only be used by people with mobility difficulties."

Regarding prevention with respect to Covid-19, the Buenos Aires Government will also establish

"stagger the entry and exit times

to educational establishments", "a record must be kept of all persons who enter the establishment", "provided that If possible, entry and exit will be made through differentiated accesses "and" care should be taken to avoid entering the establishment by family references, responsible adults or any other outsider, except in case of emergency and / or in cases authorized by the establishment educational".

As for the "adaptation process corresponding to kindergartens, a family reference or responsible adult should be allowed to enter the educational establishment" and they "should preferably be carried out outdoors and with a previous shift".

The youngest, in addition, will not be able to enter the schools "some toy" whenever possible.

Otherwise "it will be sanitized before entering the room."

All this, in addition to the aforementioned hygiene and distancing measures.

Staggered hours and breaks

As for the classrooms, "each room / grade / year / course will be assigned a permanent space and each student will be assigned a fixed desk / table and chair whose layout cannot be modified."

Also "at the beginning of each day the teacher in charge will take attendance and inform the driving team of the absences" and the educational establishment "will monitor the reasons for the absence of the students."

In addition, "the teacher will begin the class by explaining to the students the measures established by this protocol and COVID-19 symptoms, until they consider it necessary."

The latter will also apply to breaks or "scheduled breaks", which will be in the "patios or places designated by shift, not being able to come into contact with students from other groups."

"If the school does not have enough spaces to avoid contact between bubble groups,

the schedules

for their development

may be staggered

or alternate the use of classrooms or spaces for the development of face-to-face classes in any of the scheduled breaks" , clarifies.

Neither will "ball games or physical contact between students be allowed, and game elements or materials may not be shared."

Also "should avoid meetings of teachers or other members of the educational community in spaces where the measures can not be met" and both students and staff should wash their hands or use alcohol gel "prior to returning to the classroom."

On the other hand, the Ministry of Education of the City informs that "by means of article 24 of the National Decree of Necessity and Urgency No. 1033-PEN / 20, it is established that teaching and non-teaching staff and students -and their companion in if applicable-, who attend face-to-face classes, are exempted from the prohibition of the use of the public urban, interurban and interjurisdictional passenger transport service ".

In order to have this exception, they must process the "Unique Certificate for Circulation - Emergency COVID-19", called "SCHOOL" enabled in the link: www.argentina.gob.ar/circular.

Finally, a list of obligations that must be met by both teaching staff and students is established:

● Comply in a timely manner with the entry and exit schedules to the educational establishment that were assigned to them.

● Comply with the activities indicated by their teacher for pedagogical continuity at home.

● Comply with the safety, hygiene and disinfection measures that are indicated.

● Students must bring the mask correctly placed from home.

They should also wear another replacement mask in case it is necessary to replace it during the school day.

● Students must present all the documentation that is requested by the educational establishment such as, health form, sworn statement, among others in the first week of class.

● Avoid physical contact of all kinds such as kisses, hugs, handshakes, fists, among others.

● Do not share any type of personal item, such as supplies, books, food, protective items, among others.

● Transfer from home to the educational establishment only those elements that are minimal and essential for the development of the school day.

● Do not stay more than 15 minutes in restrooms and teaching break rooms and always have the mask on correctly.

● Carry out the disinfection of the study place itself at the beginning and end of the school day (both teachers and students from Primary Level).

Although this action will not replace institutional cleaning, it will allow the incorporation of hygiene habits in their places of regular use.

To this end, it is expected that desks / tables, chairs and materials used in laboratories will be disinfected with 70% alcohol, prior to their storage.

Also that they carry out the disinfection of their cell phones at those times.

● In the event that the girl, boy or adolescent does not attend the educational establishment on the scheduled day and time, for health reasons related to COVID-19, the families must inform the school authorities of this circumstance.

Likewise, family members or responsible adults, or students of legal age, must sign an affidavit in which they declare that they know all the measures in this document.

And before the appearance of a suspected case of COVID-19 in the educational establishment, it should proceed according to what is established in the protocol for handling suspected and confirmed cases of the Ministry of Health and the management team should carry out the following actions:

● Direct it / or to the isolation sector designated for this purpose.

Only those with symptoms compatible with suspicion of COVID-19 should remain in said physical isolation space, except for those students who, due to their degree of autonomy or condition, require the accompaniment of an adult, or when the situation so warrants.

● Isolate the bubble.

● Contact the person's health coverage system immediately and, if you have exclusive public coverage, go to the nearest UFU.

● In the case of students, the family member or adult or responsible person must also be contacted so that he or she takes the student to the nearest UFU or complies with the instructions of the person's health coverage.

● In case of confirmed teaching or non-teaching staff, inform ART.

● Once the case has been confirmed, the Ministry of Health of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires will identify the people who meet the criteria for close contact.

If the case is confirmed, the following will be taken into account: if the confirmed case is a teacher, the bubbles to which said teacher has taught classes for up to 48 hours must be isolated for 10 consecutive days.

before confirming said case without prejudice to the epidemiological investigation to be carried out by the team responsible for the Ministry of Health.

On the other hand, if the confirmed case is a student, "the bubble to which it belongs and the teachers who have taught it up to 48 hours before confirming said case should be isolated for 10 consecutive days" .

In addition, "it will be a requirement for students to enter the Educational Establishment to present, on the first day of face-to-face classes, an Affidavit in which their family member or responsible adult states that they know all the terms of this document, that the student is in conditions of attending the educational establishment and declare its commitment not to send the student if any of the cohabitants is a confirmed case of COVID-19 or shows symptoms compatible with suspected infection ".

AFG