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A single protocol, universal for all schools in every part of Italy. To return to the classroom and reduce the chances of contagion as much as possible by limiting to the minimum any form of contact, at least within the institutions. This is what was discussed within the government: the goal is to have univocal guidelines in the event of infections in schools, to act promptly and safely.
Education is certainly one of the topics that has been debated the most in the last year, penalized by distance learning and which, in a chain, has influenced the choices of the executive also on other aspects of common life. Why, as he pointed out the same Prime Minister Mario Draghi, what worries open schools is the whole domino effect that depends on it, from the contacts between the children once they are out of the classrooms to the transport that risk becoming once again the privileged vehicle for the spread of the virus.
Going forward with online lessons for a long time, however, is no longer sustainable, neither for children nor for families nor for the State which is forced to allocate more and new funds. We need to find a way out, waiting for the vaccination plan to be completed, making everything easier.
Thus, precisely on the day in which kindergarten, elementary and middle school children return to class, the ministerial indications to be disseminated to school leaders throughout Italy are being discussed, a set of rules that put an end to the recurrent uncertainties and discrepancies that arise from different indications of the local health authorities (with rules that often change even in the same city). The measure is working on the departments of Health and Education: as soon as it is signed and sent to the regional school offices, the directive will then be sent to the educational institutions and will immediately become operational.
What does the protocol provide for schools
If the rules on the distances to be kept during the lessons are now clear enough, the same cannot be said for the other moments of the day when the pupils are at school. The provision in the process of approval prohibits children from any occasion in which gatherings can be created. You will not be able to stop in front of the vending machines for food and drinks (which will be deactivated if necessary), you will not be able to meet outside the classrooms, in courtyards or corridors.
It will be up to the school managers to guarantee compliance with the rules and to ensure that the only moment of aggregation between the children is in the classroom.
What happens if a pupil is positive
One of the most confusing aspects concerns the protocol to be followed when a student is positive and the new rules will try to answer the many questions that everyone has answered so far following different principles.
The rules will define once and for all the duration of his quarantine, that of the class, the periods necessary and sufficient to make the swab, the eventuality and the timing of the Dad for the student if the contagion continues, the counting and the justification of the absences. And all the ways of interaction between school, family and local health authorities.
