Letters | Opening schools should be a priority, so why does the Hong Kong government treat it as an afterthought?

Readers ask policymakers to consider the long-term effects of school closures on children, call out teachers for their opposition to in-person classes, and offer a student’s perspective on learning challenges during the pandemic

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An empty school in Hong Kong pictured on March 4. Photo: AFP

Published: 11:30am, 3 Apr 2022

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The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted education globally, affecting vulnerable children the most. In Hong Kong, closing schools has typically been one of the first tactics deployed to curb outbreaks. The result has been a growing “Covid gap” in academic attainment. Can our leaders, educators and parents learn from the experience of past infection waves and take the lead in supporting the next generation?

Last December when Britain was hit by the Omicron wave, the Children’s Commissioner for England urged the prime minister not to close schools, noting that students had already taken “a huge hit for us”.

Now, despite the Omicron variant, schools are open in most countries, supported by health and safety protocols and vaccination programmes. In contrast, it is still a hot topic in Hong Kong whether face-to-face classes should be resumed on April 19, when an estimated 4.5 million people will have already been infected.

We must think globally and act locally to achieve sustainable recovery. Researchers have already claimed online classes are not as effective as face-to-face lessons. They also risk increasing inequality and widening the learning gap between students from different backgrounds.

The coronavirus will not go away soon, but we cannot simply keep our children at home forever. Here are some positive and sensible actions we can take: