“Our compass remains the priority of an open school.” Faced with the fifth wave of the Covid-19 epidemic in France, the Minister of National Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer, announced, Thursday, November 25, a slight “adjustment” health rules in kindergarten and elementary school.
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If the health protocol remains at level 2 throughout the territory, with in particular the obligation to wear the mask for all adults and for children from CP, the procedure to be followed when a child tests positive is changing. Here is what to remember from the minister’s announcements at midday at a press conference.
What is changing for the students?
“Starting next week”, the discovery of a positive case among the students will no longer lead to the systematic closure of the class concerned, as was the case until now, announced Jean-Michel Blanquer. Classes may continue within the classroom, but “only students with a negative test will be able to return”.
The tests can take place directly within the school, thanks to the intervention of an external laboratory. When the organization of such screening will not be “Not possible” in the school establishment, it will be up to the legal representatives to take their children to be tested in a pharmacy or in a laboratory. These tests will be free.
The Minister specified that the practical modalities of this device would be “specified” over the next ten days. Jean-Michel Blanquer mentioned an entry into force of these rules “in the course of next week, in a differentiated way according to the places”, to take into account in particular the intervention capacities of laboratories.
Why such a change ?
This new device is inspired by an experiment carried out since the beginning of October in schools in ten departments: all students are tested there from the first positive case in class and “only the positives stay at home”. “This device shows its relevance” and allows “to avoid closing classes”, believes Jean-Michel Blanquer.
Minister hears “follow the principles” of this experiment, while adapting in a way “flexible and pragmatic” the test methods. In some “guinea pig” departments, where systematic screening at school was planned, “we cannot ensure that all the necessary actors are present within 24 hours”, he admits. Hence the decision to place the burden of part of the tests on parents and city structures.
This protocol adjustment “aims to empower everyone so that there is more testing done for children”, defends the tenant of the rue de Grenelle. According to him, the room for maneuver is great: his ministry is already “able to offer 600,000 tests per week” in schools, “but it is rather around 200 00 which are made”, often for lack of parental consent. The “carrot” of staying in class could be a game-changer.
How many classes are already closed?
Nationally, 8,500 classes were closed due to cases of Covid-19 Wednesday, November 24, or nearly 2% of the 527,200 primary and secondary classes in the country, announced Jean-Michel Blanquer. These closures “almost exclusively concern primary school “, he clarified. They numbered only 4,100 on November 19, meaning they more than doubled in less than a week.
At the peak of the crisis last year, France counted “up to 12,000 closed classes”, recalled the minister. Records are not reached, but “many families are affected by the closures”, he underlined, evoking “about 180,000” households. The number of positive students identified stood at 3,200 students yesterday.
What about college and high school?
In secondary school, status quo. Vaccinated students (who represent 75% of 12-17 year olds) have the opportunity to stay in class, which drastically reduces closures. Only unvaccinated risky contact cases are required to follow distance education for a week, the minister recalled.
“Today, in middle and high school, the fifth wave has less impact thanks in particular to vaccination.”
Jean-Michel Blanquer, Minister of National Educationin press conference
The Minister considers the protocol in place sufficient, especially since “the vaccination of teachers reaches 90%” in National Education, beyond the national average, he welcomes. “Secondary education, with the current protocol, can go through the fifth wave”, he believes.