Petition started for more perspective secondary school students.

Petition started for more perspective secondary school students.

More parents want the school time for high school students to be extended. The young people sit at home behind the computer to follow lessons while parents and younger brothers or sisters often go to work or primary school. The parents want the young people to be offered more perspective.

Physical lessons

Although high schools have been fully open since June 2, physical teaching is not always given. This has mainly to do with the practical implementation of the 1.5-meter rule between students and staff. Limiting travel movements also means real contact at school is only possible in a small way.

Office clerk

In the newspaper Trouw, parent Annelies van Walsem says Wednesday about her thirteen-year-old son: ‘He crawls behind the computer like an office clerk for his online lessons. Microphone on mute. He usually does not see his classmates, because teenagers prefer to turn off their cameras and many I think are still in bed. This way he spends forty hours a week. I leave the house with a knot in my stomach.’

Fatter and sloppier

Van Walsem is worried: ‘Social contacts dry up when everyone sits at home. His only break of the week is football practice. You see the children become fatter and sloppier from sitting at home. There is endless gaming. The atmosphere at home is poisoned and situations arise that parents would rather not talk about: the many fights and the lethargy.’

Petition

It is a situation that is familiar. Many parents see their children become tired. And there is no vaccine yet against corona, so it is expected that even after the summer holiday full lessons will not be possible for a long time. For some parents this is a reason to act. In three days, the petition ‘High school fully open,’ started by Van Walsem, was signed by three thousand parents.

Spread and infection

The RIVM tells Trouw that the share of children in spreading and infection of corona is small, but the chance for youths above fifteen is slightly higher than for the youngest. In tested children up to 12 years, corona was found in 0.5 percent; for children up to 18 years it was 1.8 percent. The RIVM wants more clarity on the contagiousness of high school students first. That takes more time, and that means that on June 24, when the cabinet announces new education measures, no relaxations are expected yet.

More information

The article in Trouw can be read online. The important focus points for opening high schools can be read on our website. The answers to frequently asked questions are in our FAQ. For personal advice, you can call our advice desk on working days at 088-6050101 or via vraag@oudersenonderwijs.nl.