Amidst a growing concern about school pupils’ mental health during lockdown, a group of politicians in Germany are advocating for the introduction of outdoor teaching and lessons, in order to keep schools open if coronavirus cases rise again.
Many school-age children are feeling the stress of being out of education for much of 2020 and 2021, and are struggling to catch up on what they have missed. Politicians fear that this will only be worsened if the amended Infection Protection Act requires schools to be closed, without considering other alternative ways to stay safe and healthy at school.
One solution offered to the problem is to hold classes outside in the open air, where students are less likely to pass COVID-19 on to each other. This suggestion is especially viable now, given that summer is approaching and the weather in Germany should begin to improve, allowing children to attend classes outside.
Green party MP Janosch Dahmen explained that, "Outdoor lessons or excursions in parks and forests are a very pragmatic and sensible step towards opening up when the incidence rate falls." Several other politicians also spoke in favour of the idea, including deputy FDP chairperson Katja Suding, adding that she is in favour of “all sensible measures that make classroom teaching possible again”.
Another suggestion made by politicians in order to avoid school closures is to further reduce the size of classes, so that students are having regular contact with fewer people - further minimising the spread of coronavirus.