The basis of the plan calls for five layers of protective actions to help prevent the spread of coronavirus within the educational system.
At the first level, a series of serological tests will be conducted on students to determine who has had the virus – including those who were asymptomatic and unaware of it – and have an effective level of antibodies. This program is beginning in haredi (ultra-Orthodox) schools in Beit Shemesh, Bnei Brak, Betar Illit, Modi’in Illit and Elad through local testing complexes. The haredi schools for boys resumed studies on Monday, the first of Elul.
At the second level, parents will receive vouchers through their health funds and be asked to take their children for rapid tests 48 hours before the start of the school year. Some 1.9 million students will be asked to take these tests.
The third level is being called the “Green Class Model,” which will operate in schools where a verified case of COVID-19 has been discovered. The individual who has tested positive will enter quarantine, while the remainder will be tested for coronavirus. Those who are sick will enter quarantine, and those who are negative will return to studying at school and will be tested every day for seven days. Those who are sick will enter quarantine while those who receive a negative test will return to studying. This will prevent a situation that occurred last year when each case discovered put a whole class into quarantine.
This model will also begin as a pilot program in the haredi schools and will expand to schools within the Arab community, which return to full studies in September, while Jewish students have only a few school days in September due to the Jewish holidays.
The fourth level is the Magen (Shield) program, under which coronavirus testing will take place in schools once a week in “orange” and “red” areas.
The fifth level carries the “Lifestyle” label and focuses on wearing a mask, maintaining social distancing and hygiene and learning in open spaces. There will also be continued monitoring and control of morbidity data through the National Control Center and monitoring morbidity data through the education system.
In addition to these measures, an unofficial sixth level is the continuation of the vaccination campaign. In Israel, all those above the age of 12 are eligible to receive the vaccinations and those above 60 are already receiving their third shots.
“The return of students to the school routine will have a decisive effect on their personal and social resilience and the shaping of their personalities,” said Education Minister Yifat Shasha-Biton. “We have a moral and educational duty to create certainty and stability for them.”
The main problem with the program will be compliance. Even a simple safety measure such as wearing a mask in public places and on public transport is being widely ignored and we have seen – criminal – behavior by people ignoring quarantine rules on their return from a trip abroad.
If the onus is on parents to ensure regular testing of their children, it also requires an element of trust.
Part of the problem is the lack of clarity regarding the regulations and their publication in languages and formats that suit different communities. Another is the lack of enforcement.
Threats of another lockdown during the upcoming Jewish holiday season will not be taken seriously if previous experience shows that there is no enforcement and noncompliance is shrugged off.
This school, year a new lesson must be on the country’s curriculum: civic responsibility. Israel excels in coming together and expressing solidarity in emergency situations. Everyone, from the youngest child in the school system to great-grandparents, must treat this pandemic as a war and do their part to keep Israel safe and to protect others. Coronavirus will be with us for a while. It is a lesson we all need to internalize.