Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1285850
7 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 6 SEPTEMBER 2020 OPINION THE decision to reopen all schools on 28 September, with teachers and pupils observing protocols imposed by the health authorities, is undoubtedly the correct decision. Life during the COVID-19 pandemic is difficult for parents and children alike and the return to school is an important and welcome step. It was obvious that the case for reopening schools – not just in Malta – could not be dismissed easily and that the disadvan- tages of keeping children away from school were so severe, to both the children's education and the country's economy, that keeping the schools closed was a non-starter. The first priority of the new school protocols must be to re- duce virus transmission rates and protect the health and safe- ty of students and staff. In a fast-moving pandemic, adopting strategies to reflect the level of transmission in their communi- ties is easier said than done. Protocols have also been estab- lished for school transport, with windows having to be kept open at all times and the names of stu- dents on each bus recorded to make contact-tracing exercises easier in case one of the students contracts the virus. Children who live within 1.5 kilometres – rather than the usual 1 km – of their school will be encouraged to walk to school. The size of classrooms in our country should not be too much of a hindrance and social distancing is to be respected as much as possible with desks within classrooms having to be a minimum of 1.5m apart. Areas within schools that are not usu- ally used as classes will also be used to create small classrooms. Moving students from one room to another is to be avoided with students rather than teachers being assigned to a classroom. In addition, schools will open earlier this scholastic year in order to avoid the situation in which parents drop their chil- dren off all at the same time as social distancing remains very important, even outside schools. Schools had been closed since mid-March, a few days after the first case of COVID-19 was reg- istered in Malta. This closure led to many problems, includ- ing those of mothers having to abandon their jobs to help their children follow lessons via the internet; besides instances of pupils from disadvantaged back- grounds becoming even more disadvantaged with their staying at home. Remote learning is especial- ly tough on those students who also have to deal with particular challenges such as learning dis- abilities, economic hardship, or unstable home environments. Many of these disadvantaged students cannot thrive in situa- tions where they lack hands-on guidance, emotional support, and access to technology. Many students all over the world have persisted with their lessons under difficult circum- stances, with the support of ded- icated teachers and parents. However, many other chil- dren will need extra support to catch up on their learning when schools reopen. Do our schools intend to organise catch-up les- sons to help such students? This might include starting the year with refresher or remedial cours- es, after-school programmes or supplemental assignments to be done at home. Nothing has been said about this point – either by the educa- tion ministry or by the teachers' unions. Surely starting this scho- lastic year as if the last one was just another normal year is not indicated. Yet there is a discon- certing silence about this. Children who have not gone to school since mid-March are like- ly to be experiencing worry, anx- iety and fear – fears that are very similar to those experienced by adults, such as a fear of dying, a fear of their relatives dying, or a fear of having to receive medical treatment. Returning to school this year should be treated with caution. Students have different charac- ters and dispositions. The long absence from school did not af- fect all students in the same way. With schools being closed for so long, children may no longer have that sense of structure and stimulation that is provided by the school environment. Now they will have the opportunity to be with their friends again and get that social support that is es- sential for good mental well-be- ing. Are our educational authorities preparing teachers on how to deal with these unusual circum- stances? The looming China – US cold war China is bent on creating a world-class military that can conduct joint operations across the globe and already boasts the world's largest navy, according to the Pentagon's latest annual assessment of the Chinese mili- tary released a few days ago. The report says that the Chi- nese Communist Party "has be- come increasingly confident of achieving its goal" of having "a world-class military by 2049". A key component has been China's continuing maritime build-up – from surface forces to ballistic missile submarines. Its fleet now amounts to 350 warships compared to the 293 of the United States. The Pentagon expects the Chinese fleet will number 360 warships by the end of this decade. The report points out that Chi- na's near-complete lack of trans- parency over its nuclear forces raised legitimate questions over China's intent as it fields larger and more capable nuclear forc- es. And this includes more road- based missile-launchers and more ground-based silos. As Donald Trump gears up for the final stretch of the presiden- tial race following the Republi- can convention, a glaring con- trast with his 2016 campaign is his silence on the US trade defi- cit and its relations with China. Trump took aim at China during the Republican Convention over everything from its responsibili- ty for coronavirus to its human rights abuses against Uighurs in Xinjiang. But he was silent about trade. Four years ago, Trump had pledged to negotiate better trade deals for US workers and asked voters to use the size of the deficit as a 'scorecard'. In fact, the 2019 trade deficit with China is practically the same as in 2016. Earlier this month, Trump said China was "more than liv- ing up to" its commitments, prompting Tony Blinken, a sen- ior adviser to Joe Biden, to ac- cuse him of trying to hoodwink the public. According to Blink- en, "the Chinese government has outmanoeuvred President Trump at every turn." In spite of his failures in deal- ing with China, Trump is using the China card against his Dem- ocrat opponent, Joe Biden. The argument over who can sound toughest on China has become a central issue of the presidential campaign. The truth is that China and the US are moving towards a cold war and this will happen whoev- er wins the Presidential election in November. Michael Falzon Back to school micfal45@gmail.com