Frankfurt School: Classroom classes suspended | Frankfurt
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A seventh grade at a Frankfurt school has to study at home because of several infected people. The health department sees no outbreaks in Frankfurt schools.
At the IGS Nordend in Frankfurt, the bad news is coming in quick succession. Here a corona case in the ninth grade, there a corona case in the eighth and tenth. But the virus is particularly prevalent in year 7: Eleven out of 100 children in year and one teacher are currently infected. “We have come through the pandemic well so far,” says headmistress Susanne Frye. In the weeks between the summer and autumn holidays, there were a total of maybe seven or eight cases at the integrated comprehensive school. “But now it’s boiling.”
If a child’s antigen test is positive, they will be sent home. If the PCR test confirms the result, the entire class tests itself every day for two weeks and the mask requirement also applies on site. This is the current practice. When there were four PCR-confirmed cases from students and one from a teacher in a class at IGS Nordend, face-to-face teaching was suspended for two days for this class in consultation with the health department. The students stayed at home Monday and Tuesday. To break a possible chain of infection, says Frye. On Wednesday students were allowed to die again if they had taken a citizenship test the evening before. Which, of course, must have been negative.
Frye cannot explain why many children are infected in year 7 – including vaccinated children. “You suspect Halloween parties behind it,” she says. “But some of the children don’t even know each other.” The virus is carried on and spread. You’re also hearing more about cases in other schools, says Frye.
Education Minister Alexander Lorz (CDU) announced on Monday that the infection rates in the Hessian schools were at a moderate level in the first week after the holidays, both among the teachers and among the students. The overwhelming number of self-tests were negative. No school in the country has to close. “The regular testing at our schools has also proven very effective.”
Of more than 1.5 million self-tests carried out in schools during the holiday care and in the first week after the holiday, 875 were positive, said Lorz. This involved 858 students as well as 17 teachers and other staff. A PCR test confirmed that there were still 545 people: 532 schoolchildren and 13 teachers and other staff.
The positive rate at the end of last week was 0.04 percent for students and 0.02 percent for teachers and other staff employed in schools. “Nevertheless, we must of course remain vigilant,” emphasized Lorz. “Because our goal is to offer face-to-face lessons throughout the winter.”
At IGS Nordend, the numbers don’t feel as moderate as the minister described them for the first week after the holidays. It is a good thing that “face-to-face teaching is an absolute priority,” says Frye. This maxim of the state government is correct. But the numbers are of course calculated over the whole of Hesse. “Frankfurt has one of the highest incidences, you have to look at that regionally and perhaps take other sensible measures here.”
For example, wearing the mask in place during class. On Monday, the two prevention weeks after the autumn break were over. Now there is no longer a need to wear a mask in place. “It’s too early to put up with this now,” says Frye. “Of course it is exhausting to wear the mask all day, but it makes sense.” Also Frankfurt city councilor Rafaela Hartenstein thinks that if the numbers continue to rise, you should think about wearing the mask. “Many students are not vaccinated and have a higher risk of infection,” she says. The mask is an effective means and many have got used to it by now.
The Frankfurt Health Department has not yet finished evaluating the prevention weeks. “But there were no outbreaks in schools,” says Wiebke Reimann, spokeswoman for the office. The situation is basically calm, although tests are carried out regularly. “Of course there are cases in schools,” says Reimann. Until now, the individual cases in schools could always have been identified very quickly and reliably. This could prevent outbreaks. At the IGS Nordend, however, the class was sent to distance learning.
The health department can have a mask requirement “if this measure is considered necessary and proportionate AND there is a legal basis for it”. with dpa