The social, emotional and academic effects of online learning can outweigh the risks of viruses

WEST PARK, Florida – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention collected data from schools that are already doing face-to-face learning show that the transmission of COVID is not significant in the classroom. The recently released report says that the type of rapid spread seen in homes for the elderly and highly dense workplaces is not present in the school environment.

CDC researchers published his opinion Tuesday in the Journal of American Medical Association.

The accumulation of data was collected in international schools and also in schools in the United States.

However, they cautioned that there is evidence that learning online and at home is affecting children socially, emotionally and academically.

“The reason we are pushing to open schools is because having children in person is better for them,” said Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.

Superintendents in Broward and Miami Dade have also been saying this for weeks.

“Our schools are not a source of spreading the pandemic,” said Broward County School Superintendent Robert Runcie.

And the Superintendent of Public Schools in the City of Miami-Dade, Alberto Carvalho, said: “We know who is losing ground. And there are some children who need to go back to school. “

Both have insisted that thousands of children, especially those who are lagging behind academically, be brought back to personal learning.

Lavonda Clark, who was picking up her nephew at school, said, “When the kids are at home, they don’t pay attention.”

Reynaldo Hubbard was waiting for his grandchildren. “They get better grades when they’re at school,” he said.

But the CDC warns that appropriate procedures must continue to be applied, including wearing a mask, physical distance, better ventilation of the environment and expanded testing.

Communities also need to control the virus so that it stays out of the classroom.

Karla Hernandez-Mats, president of the Miami-Dade County Teachers Union, said that “schools are a reflection of the community.”

Teacher unions in both counties agree that face-to-face learning is the best option for students, but are concerned with the safety of schools and community behavior.

Unless our community is willing to do what it should be doing, we will continue to see the spread and that is what makes us nervous, ”said Hernandez-Mats.

President Joe Biden has promised to open more schools in the first 100 days of his administration, but warns that it will be expensive for the country – $ 130 billion is needed for schools to open safely.