As representatives of a group of concerned parents, we would like to express serious doubt and reservations about the Education Bureau’s latest decision to close kindergartens and lower primary classes throughout Hong Kong. We believe this blanket policy is completely unwarranted and extremely harmful to our children. We also express great disappointment in the handling of the entire pandemic, as our children’s right to education has consistently been sacrificed over the government’s own cowardice and incompetence. First, there is no evidence schools are a source of Covid-19 transmission. None of the spikes, including the latest fourth wave in Hong Kong, was caused by transmissions in schools or among children. The latest school closure was prompted by a spread of upper respiratory infections . Hong Kong is probably the only place in the world to order a blanket closure of schools over the common cold . Even considering the latest wave, children are less likely to get Covid-19 from attending school than from the general community. While schools have strictly enforced various control policies including wearing masks, checking temperature, no school lunches and strict social distancing, high-risk activities in the community have been permitted to go on without any effective checks. Second, other policies that could have more effectively controlled the spread of Covid-19 have not been put in place or not been enforced strictly. These include policies against visitors for hotel quarantines , mandatory Covid-19 testing and closure of high-risk entertainment venues. The latest spikes were caused by the lack of control for dance clubs, bars and overseas arrivals, among others. Looking around the world, almost all advanced economies with the exception of Hong Kong have tried their best to keep schools open while putting in place other tough lockdown measures. You do not have to look far – just consider Singapore and see how many days their schools have been closed so far during the pandemic. Our children have sacrificed enough. It is time for the government to do something for our children. Hong Kong too quick to close schools over coronavirus fears Third, we believe a large amount of value in education comes from in-person learning and socialisation in schools. Our children have already lost so much time in school, and we are concerned about them being left behind because of the incompetence of our government. Finally, keeping children at home hurts their physical and mental health. A child’s immune system can be weakened by a lack of exercise and outdoor exposure. There is no scientific evidence that children are better protected from Covid-19 just because they do not go to school. On the contrary, extended home isolation can lead to some mental health issues. Therefore, we urge the government to reconsider school closure policies. Closing schools is not an effective way to fight Covid-19 and should not be the first option any time we have a spike in cases. Other, more effective, measures should be put in place before we ever consider closing schools. J. Yuan, Lai Chi Kok; and M. Wong, Tai Kok Tsui