MIRI: Although some parents are nervous about sending their children back to school when the new school session starts on January 20, most parents feel it is necessary for their children to resume their learning.
Grace Toh, 36, a mother of two children aged seven and nine, and an entrepreneur from Kuching, said, “Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, life must go on. We must stay calm.
“I’ve trained my children to always follow the SOPs at home so that they know the importance of taking care of their hygiene while in school.
“We’ve taught them to always wash their hands with soap or hand sanitisers, to wear face masks and practise social distancing in public places.”
Toh added she and her husband had also talked to their children about the virus.
“It is important to do so, so that they understand the situation and why they must obey the SOPs.”
Another parent, Iqbal Abdollah, who is also the vice president of a Parent-Teacher Association of a primary school here, said he was confident of the SOPs imposed by the federal and state governments to ensure the safety of children in schools.
“Previously, when schools reopened during the recovery movement control order (RMCO) period on July 1, 2020, many parents worried about sending their children to school. Nevertheless, many also still sent their children for face-to-face learning with teachers, ” he said.
He added, at that time the R-naught (Ro) value of Covid-19 infection transmission in Malaysia was less than 1.5.
“In other words, the lower R-naught figure, the better,” he said.
The R-naught is a calculation of the average ‘spreadability’ of an infectious disease.
“Currently, Malaysia R Value is at 1.09 and there are only 10 days left for the school to open for face-to-face teaching and learning sessions.
“As a parent and vice president of a school PTA, I am nervous about sending my children to school. But with the proactive approach of the Ministry of Health (MOH) together with the Sarawak Disaster Management Committee (SDMC), I am confident of sending my children to school.
“I also put my trust and faith in the Ministry of Education (MOE) which will definitely impose specific methods to contain the spread,” he explained.
