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In Australia, most schools have been back for about eight school weeks. We are currently in winter (right now, this is the equaivalent of February in the northern hemisphere) and the middle of our flu season. Our national case numbers are 20,000 with 266 deaths from a population of 25 million. My school recently had a student case discovered which closed us down for two days for cleaning.
As a 56 year old, I don't feel safe nor comfortable. I have been the only one of the teachers to wear a mask for the entire time we have been back teaching even though it has not been a requirement. The students do not socially distance at all and the teachers pay lip service to it. Thankfully I am a social isolate and have been keeping my distance well before the coronavirus. We live in a reasonably moderate climate where a maximum temperature of 60F is considered cold. Even on these days, I have every window and the door open for ventilation. It is only uncomfortable on mornings that get down to about 40F but I have the reverse cycle AC on in those cases with everything still open.
As little as two weeks ago, you would think that the virus doesn't exist anymore. We have had very few case numbers in my city (population around 400,000) and certain restrictions like school sport off-site and school incursions had started again. My school reopens on Monday and I will be interested to see what will be people's reactions to this. Masks have not been a requirement in my state (NSW) but have recently been strongly suggested for shopping or public transport. I'm guessing that I won't be the only weirdo with a mask.
Our daily routine has been teachers administering hand sanitizer at the start of every lesson (BTW the spray bottles are so much better than the slow drip ones) and then spraying the desks with disinfectant at the end of each period. How effective is this? Who knows? I think it just gives a false sense of security. At home, I am not a germaphobe at all but quite a slob. At work, if I touch a projector remote, I sanitize. If I answer the phone, sanitize. Touch anything that doesn't belong to me, sanitize.
For any teachers out there, make sure that you know what your leave requirements are if you need to get tested or isolate. Does the school/department cover you or does it come from your personal leave?
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