Public school students in several states are returning to the classroom but some parents say they will not let their children become ‘guinea pigs’.
Only four new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed nationwide on Sunday, as the Victoria and NSW governments announced further easing of restrictions introduced in March to curb the spread of the disease.
This week marks a return to school for many Australian students, with all children at public schools in NSW and Queensland getting back into the classroom on Monday.
Tasmanian Kindergarten to Year Six students, along with Year 11 and 12 students, will also resume learning at school on Monday, before students in Years 7 to 10 join them on June 9.
Children across the country will all be ordered back to school today as state and territory governments loosen restrictions as coronavirus infection rates drop. Pictured: Students in Sydney on Monday
The ACT is continuing its staged return with students in Years 3, 4 and 10 getting back to school on Monday, leaving only Years 5, 6, 8 and 9 to return on June 2.
Victorian kids are bracing for their return, with children in prep to Year 2 and Years 11 and 12 returning on Tuesday, before the remaining cohort goes back from June 9.
Students are already back in school full time in South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
All students at public schools in NSW and Queensland will be back to school from Monday while Victoria, Tasmania and the ACT will have a staged return. Pictured is a Sydney student walking to school last week while wearing a mask
Students are already back in school full time in South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory. Pictured are school teachers in Melbourne preparing for schools to open
But some parents say they will not comply with the back to school orders out of fear for their children’s safety.
Sydney father Ash Parmar told the Sydney Morning Herald he would be keeping his two daughters aged five and eight home from school.
‘Just to open up schools for political mileage or different pressures other than health, I don’t think that I want to make my kids guinea pigs to that kind of behaviour from the government,’ Mr Parmar said.
Mr Parmar started a petition with over 7,000 signatures arguing for the NSW Education Department to allow parents to choose if they want their kids to go to school.
Despite warnings from the NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell last week that absences would be followed up he said it was worth the risk.
Sydney father Ash Parmar started a petition calling for parents to have a choice for sending their children back to school
Some parents say they will refuse to send their children back to school while others say they are very concerned but will comply with the rules
Caroline from Earlwood, in Sydney’s inner west, has two young children and said she would also be keeping them out of school for a few more weeks.
‘I just feel we’re going from zero to 100 very quickly, rather the gradual one day a week, then two or three days a week, that was promised,’ she said.
While father-of-two Mike Woodcock from West Pennant Hills, in Sydney’s north-west, said he would be sending his 10 and 13-year-old children back to school out of fear of potential consequences.
‘I’ll send them back but it’s through gritted f***ing teeth,’ he said.
Last week NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell warned that absences would be followed up. Pictured are sanitation supplies at Lysterfield Primary School in Melbourne
From June 1, Victorians will be allowed gatherings of up to 20 people at home and outdoors, along with overnight stays in hotels and campgrounds.
At the same time, people in NSW will be able to get back into beauty salons, including tanning studios and nail parlours, if the businesses roll out COVID-19 safety plans.
Sport Australia has also released a road map that will allow community sporting clubs and associations a safe return to sport at all levels.
The ‘Return to Sport Toolkit’, developed in partnership with Hockey Australia, provides comprehensive checklists, adaptable COVID-19 safety plans and templates to be used by sporting organisations.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison believes the return of community sport will be a further step in getting Australian back to normal as the country works through the coronavirus pandemic.