SHARE
COPY LINK

EDUCATION

When (and how) will Germany’s schools and Kitas reopen?

Some schools and Kitas (daycare) centres around Germany are set to open in early February, whereas others are playing it by ear based on the infection situation.

When (and how) will Germany's schools and Kitas reopen?
A Kita child plays at home in Mühlacker, Baden-Württemberg amid school closures. Photo: DPA

The first school openings around Germany should be possible as early as the beginning of February, according to Britta Ernst, President of the Conference of Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs (KMK).

The Brandenburg education minister told the Rheinische Post that the openings would only be possible, however, with a plan suited for the infection situation, for example with rotating classes. 

This would likely initially only apply to final-year classes and entering year classes.

Warning against a new wave

Charité virologist Christian Drosten, however, warned against opening schools too early. Several studies now show that schoolchildren pose at least the same risk of infection as everyone else, he said.

The more infectious new British virus variant B.1.1.7 could cause a new wave, he said in his NDR podcast. Therefore, protective measures in Kitas and schools would have to be made dependent on the number of new infections.

Helge Braun, the head of the Chancellor's Office, also warned that the B.1.1.7 mutation would probably also have consequences for schools.

READ ALSO: Covid-19 mutation to become 'dominant virus form' in Germany

Schleswig-Holstein has so far been one the only state to prepare pupils, parents and teachers for all eventualities.

Decisions on opening schools from the beginning of February will be made “depending on the incidence of infection, the incidence levels and the development of the mutations of the virus, as well as the decisions taken by the federal and state governments,” it said.

In accordance with the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Germany's northernmost state has set a clear limit for the statewide return to classroom instruction: If the number of infections statewide is significantly below the limit of 50 per 100,000 inhabitants in the past seven days.

Openings vary state by state

Ernst said that no state should base its decision on school openings on what other states are doing.

In view of the different levels of infection in Germany’s 16 states, she said it was “right for the states to make different use of the leeway offered to them”.

Most states are already doing this. In general, the requirement for in-person attendance has been scraped around Germany, and daily classes take place online from a distance

Some exceptions apply for pupils in the final years, i.e. for the 9th and 10th grades at secondary schools, as well as for the Abitur year of Gymnasiums. 

Schools have also remained open for the “emergency care” of children and young people who are not adequately equipped at home, or whose parents have to go out to work. 

A carer at a Kita in Schriesheim, Baden-Württemberg in June. Photo: DPA

READ ALSO: How can Germany improve its Kitas amid teacher shortage?

How long the school shutdown will last, however, varies from state to state. While some school ministers have decided to ditch compulsory attendance until February 14th, others hope for a gradual opening from the beginning of February.

Some states have already set up a clear plan for an earlier opening.

Rhineland-Palatinate is also planning on offering alternating classes again starting February 1st.

Baden-Württemberg was planning on opening Kitas on February 1st, but pushed the date back to at least February 18th after a coronavirus mutation was detected in 18 children and carers in a Freiburg Kita.

In Saxony, minister of education Christian Piwarz criticised that the lockdown was extended for a large number of pupils until mid-February. 

“I very much hope that we will be able to reopen Kitas and schools in February, at least in limited regular operation,” Piwarz announced at the end of last week.

“The children and young people are suffering a lot from the lockdown. A longer closure of educational institutions is hardly reasonable for children and parents.”

In Berlin, schools and Kitas are to remain closed until February 14th.

Concern about distance learning for too long

The debate on when children and young people should be allowed to attend school again is controversial.

Federal Family Minister Franziska Giffey (SPD) called for “opening perspectives” for schools and Kitas from mid-February. The longer the closures continue, “the higher the price will be,” she said, adding that child protection is also a form of health protection.

KMK President Ernst also stresses that distance learning over a long period of time is not good for primary school children in particular – a concern shared by many education experts.

However, the German Academy for Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, for example, called for a nationwide hygiene plan and a clear improvement of infection protection at schools – and also on the way to and from school – before schools are opened.
 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

HEALTH

Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

It’s back again: amid sinking temperatures, the incidence of Covid-19 has been slowly rising in Germany. But is this enough to merit worrying about the virus?

Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

More people donning face masks in supermarkets, friends cancelling plans last minute due to getting sick with Covid-19. We might have seen some of those familiar reminders recently that the coronavirus is still around, but could there really be a resurgence of the virus like we experienced during the pandemic years?

According to virologists, the answer seems to be ‘maybe’: since July, the number of people newly infected with Covid-19 has been slowly rising from a very low level.

According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), nine people per 100,000 inhabitants became newly infected in Germany last week. A year ago, there were only around 270 reported cases.

Various Corona variants are currently on the loose in the country. According to the RKI,  the EG.5 (also called Eris) and XBB.1.16 lines were each detected in the week ending September 3rd with a share of just under 23 percent. 

The highly mutated variant BA.2.86 (Pirola), which is currently under observation by the World Health Organisation (WHO), also arrived in the country this week, according to RKI. 

High number of unreported case

The RKI epidemiologists also warned about a high number of unreported cases since hardly any testing is done. They pointed out that almost half of all registered sewage treatment plants report an increasing viral load in wastewater tests.

The number of hospital admissions has also increased slightly, but are still a far cry from the occupation rate amid the pandemic. Last week it was two per 100,000 inhabitants. In the intensive care units, only 1.2 percent of all beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients.

Still, a good three-quarters (76.4 percent) of people in Germany have been vaccinated at least twice and thus have basic immunity, reported RKI. 

Since Monday, doctors’ offices have been vaccinating with the adapted vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer, available to anyone over 12 years old, with a vaccine for small children set to be released the following week and one for those between 5 and 11 to come out October 2nd.

But Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has so far only recommended that people over 60 and those with pre-existing conditions get vaccinated.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Who should get a Covid jab this autumn in Germany?

“The pandemic is over, the virus remains,” he said. “We cannot predict the course of coming waves of corona, but it is clear that older people and people with pre-existing conditions remain at higher risk of becoming severely ill from Covid-19”

The RKI also recommended that people with a cold voluntarily wear a mask. Anyone exhibiting cough, cold, sore throat or other symptoms of a respiratory illness should voluntarily stay at home for three to five days and take regular corona self-tests. 

However, further measures such as contact restrictions are not necessary, he said.

One of many diseases

As of this autumn, Covid-19 could be one of many respiratory diseases. As with influenza, there are no longer absolute infection figures for coronavirus.

Saarbrücken pharmacist Thorsten Lehr told German broadcaster ZDF that self-protection through vaccinations, wearing a mask and getting tested when symptoms appear are prerequisites for surviving the Covid autumn well. 

Only a new, more aggressive mutation could completely turn the game around, he added.

On April 7th of this year, Germany removed the last of its over two-year long coronavirus restrictions, including mask-wearing in some public places.

READ ALSO: German doctors recommend Covid-19 self-tests amid new variant

SHOW COMMENTS