The decision of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, Education Minister Yifat Shasha Bitton and Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz - that in grades 8-12 in red cities, studies will take place remotely (in Zum) if there are no 70% or more vaccinated students - is already creating a storm.
The reason: teachers' and principals' fears that the students' parents will put pressure on them to create classes of students, most of whom are vaccinated, so that learning remains frontal learning (if 70% of the students in the class are vaccinated).
In addition, the decision can create tremendous struggles and social pressure against parents who refuse to vaccinate their children and also against the students themselves - and their accusation that due to their refusal to get vaccinated there is no schooling.
"Click to transfer students"
For example, the following scenario could arise: a school in Ashdod (Red City) that has three 11th grades - one class has 80% vaccinated students and therefore she studies normally, the remaining two classes have 62% vaccinated students and 50% students who have been vaccinated. Such principals fear that the parents of the students who have been vaccinated will pressure them to move students from class to class, so that another class of students will be created with a vaccine threshold that allows return to school.
" "We have been vaccinated," says a school principal in the south of the country.
According to her, this is a non-educational step: "It will create classes and lead to academic, emotional and social gaps. Torn between the parents and the class. "
She added that "even if a class reaches a threshold of 70% vaccinated, what happens if during groupings or trends the learning group does not reach the threshold of 70%? What do we do? We will send the children home?".
Low immunization rate
It should be noted that the immunization threshold decided upon includes vaccinated, recovering students and those with a positive serological test result (antibodies).
But despite this, the percentage of vaccinated students - also called "isolation exemptions" - is low. For example, the percentage of vaccinated students in grades VII-IX is only 36%, while the percentage of students vaccinated tenth through twelfth grades is 62%.
The actual percentage is lower Hmthsnim students headstone reason not yet fully updated - some students listed As vaccinated are twelfth-grade students who have since graduated. Moreover, the list of red cities is getting longer, and among the red cities are also some of the major cities in Israel such as Ashdod, Petah Tikva, Rishon Lezion, and more.
"I'm afraid that the outline in the red cities is incomplete, and that there are loopholes and so many complex and difficult questions to deal with on a daily basis," says a veteran school principal.
"I am afraid of a situation where outstanding classes, with a stronger population, will come to school thanks to high immunization rates, while weak students will not be able to come, and this will add guilt to crime. I am in favor of opening the school year on September 1, but the outline should be tightened. More, so that it will really allow a routine during Corona and not a multiplicity of restrictions without a grip on the ground. "
Former Director General of the Ministry of Education Ronit Tirosh expressed an even sharper opinion and told Israel Today on Tuesday that in her opinion unvaccinated students should not go to school.
I think students who are not vaccinated should be left to study at home. "
The problem of loyalty
Another issue in the outline of the Ministry of Education that is not yet clear how it will be implemented in practice is the appointment of "Corona Trustees" (whose role will be to sample the children in antigen tests as part of the "Green Class" program) in each of the 5,000 schools. Although the Prime Minister approved a sum of NIS 90 million this week for three months for this purpose (this means that if 5,000 corona trustees are required, their salaries will be NIS 6,000 in each of the three months), it is still unknown who should issue a call for their recruitment and what the requirements will be. them.
it should be emphasized that the introduction of external workers into schools is a very complex topic - every one will have to be reviewed by the Security Division of the Ministry of education to make sure that he had no criminal record or open cases on sexual offenses against children, violence or drugs.