Senior Women's Reading: "Let Vaccine in Schools" Israel today

The former directors of the Ministry of Education come out with a joint call:

Enable the vaccination of Corona in schools.

The education system returns to school in about two weeks, and while the controversy over vaccines in schools is in full swing, in light of the opposition expressed by Education Minister Shasha Bitton, three senior educators - Michal Cohen, Ronit Tirosh and Dalit Stauber - who served as Ministry of Education directors, are urging students to be vaccinated.

In recent weeks, Education Minister Yifat Shasha Bitton has announced that she opposes vaccinating students in schools.

According to her, the role of the Ministry of Education is to educate and give children an optimal educational environment: "Children are dealing with emotional distress from the past year and we must not put additional social pressure on them in educational settings."

She later denied that she said in closed hearings that the vaccines were controversial, and that she did not want us to forcibly vaccinate children.

Education Minister Yifat Shasha Bitton, Oren Ben Hakon

Contrary to this position, educators believe that it is better to allow vaccination in schools. "I am very much in favor of vaccinating children inside a school. I think it is an accessible and available platform and does not require parents to look for where to get vaccinated," explains Ronit Tirosh, an educator who was director general of the Ministry of Education in 2005-2001. About the students: "I would go to severity - students who are not vaccinated should not come to school. "Just as unvaccinated people are not allowed to enter different places - unless they present a recent negative corona test."

"In my opinion, bringing unvaccinated students into the classroom is a abandonment of the students because we have been vaccinated and put them in danger. This is an epidemic we have not yet encountered, and it is a life-threatening and public health issue. The vaccinated students, and at the same time the unvaccinated students see and hear what is happening in the classroom and participate in the lesson through the zoom. "

She emphasizes that it takes courage to make such a decision: "For many it may be a politically incorrect idea and it takes courage to make a decision like that, but that is exactly what I expect from the government - not to abandon the students."

She added: "Regarding any issue of social pressure that is feared, I am sure that the case of a student who does not vaccinate and infect others who go into isolation because of it, could be a much greater scheming."

Corona vaccines for teenagers in Ashkelon // Archive photo: Yaniv Zohar

It seems that like social networks, schools may also become battlefields, where vaccine opponents intend to make unfounded claims.

"For many years it has been common for schools to cooperate when it comes to public health," says Dalit Stauber, former director general of the Ministry of Education from 2013-2011.

"In the past, a nurse and a doctor were part of the school and children received tests and health care. This is especially important in a society characterized by large gaps between populations, so I also view vaccinations at school positively, subject to parental consent."

"Do not want excluded children"

Referring to the publication in "Israel Today" about the fear of conflict between groups of vaccinated and unvaccinated students in the classroom, Stauber says: "There will be teachers who will have to deal with parental pressure to separate vaccinated children or an invitation to social events. These are challenges that the education system has not faced in the past.

Stauber emphasizes that "this is a very challenging year for the education staff. There is no certainty that the year will be conducted in a school routine, and everything will roll into the doorstep of the schools. In all this uncertainty, the education staff must plan the educational activities "Give a correct answer. Managers must be given flexible resources so that they can successfully deal with the multiple tasks."

"Give a shoulder, for the sake of routine"

"There are almost a million people in Israel who can be vaccinated in the first and second dose and have not yet done so - in their hands (or shoulders) the power to allow a routine in the studies, economy and life of all of us," says Michal Cohen, Rashi Foundation Director In the years 2017-2013. "It is very important to mobilize the educational institutions, but also the public institutions in the local authorities.

There is no doubt about one thing - it is a life-saving vaccine, the risks of which are immeasurably less than the risks of infection. "

According to her, vaccines are really not everything: "The discussion should not be limited to vaccines in schools, 'yes or no', but around creating different outlines for the start of the school year, adapted to the schools in each locality - it's not all or nothing. The choice is not between "Opening to full frontal studies as before the corona and leaving the children closed at home without any pedagogical and emotional response. There should be several outlines for the opening of the school year, which take into account different scenarios of illness."