Parents do not want school closure but stricter measures.

Parents do not want school closure but stricter measures.

The rising number of infections at school worries parents. A majority of parents want stricter measures to prevent a school closure. This appears from a survey by Ouders & Onderwijs among over 2,000 parents.

The majority of parents (60%) worry about the risk that their child will catch an infection at school. There is a strong call for measures in schools.

School Measures

There will be a press conference again on Friday. The cabinet is expected to take extra measures to reduce infections in education. Schools have already taken some measures. For example, parents are not allowed at 57% of schools and almost half of the schools exclude children with a runny nose (42%). These measures find support among parents and 41% think these measures are enough. An equally large group of parents wants stricter measures (40%) and also thinks the government must take new measures for education (42%).

School Closure

There is little support for heavier measures that affect education and the children themselves. Only 30% of parents support a temporary school closure. There is also no support for a corona pass at schools or halving the classes again at secondary education. However, there is support for temporarily excluding parents from the school, stricter quarantine rules, wearing face masks, and using self-tests. Parents also want teachers to get booster shots with priority.

Concerns

‘Many parents see that corona is going around at school and worry about it,’ says Lobke Vlaming, director of Ouders & Onderwijs. ‘That is right, although corona is not serious for many children, they also bring it home. Still, there is little enthusiasm for a temporary school closure. Parents see value in measures that help education to continue: limiting contact between students, postponing excursions and celebrations, and better communication about measures and infections at school. In my opinion, these are wise measures that can help keep education open.’

Staying Home

Almost 70% of the children missed lessons this school year because of corona. Most of these children had to stay home because teachers were absent due to corona or because they had corona-like symptoms. A quarter says whole classes were sent home.

Want to know more? Check all research data in the report.

Research

This research was done among the Landelijk Ouderpanel and via an open questionnaire. It is a survey, not a representative study. The questionnaire was completed by 2,063 parents. Among the respondents, parents with children in primary education are overrepresented (68%). Would you also like to share your opinion about your child’s education? Read more about the parent panel and sign up!

Questions

If you have questions about the corona measures, you can contact our staff. By email: vraag@oudersenonderwijs.nl or phone: 088-6050101. We are available on weekdays between 09.30-12.30 and 13.00-16.00.