According to the Minister of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Aleksey Tsoi, the preservation of the online learning regime is due to a number of reasons.

  Firstly, since March 2,418 cases of coronavirus infection among children have been registered in Kazakhstan, of which 98% have recovered, 34 children are receiving treatment.

  “That is, the formation of closed teams creates a high risk of infection transmission,” the minister said.

  Secondly, according to the World Health Organization, children under 12 years of age transmit COVID-19 less intensely, but still. And at the age of 12 years and older, they play an active role in the transmission of COVID-19 and can be a source of infection for households, people at risk - these can be people with chronic diseases, as well as people over 60 years old.

  “Thirdly, despite the established requirements for full-time schools, we all understand very well that if they are not followed, the goal of controlling the incidence of coronavirus infection is not achieved, and at the same time we understand that to ensure their full compliance within the walls of the school - the task is quite difficult. Especially for elementary school children. It is quite difficult to keep them in one place for a long time. Moreover, the concentration of a large number of children in closed rooms with non-compliance with the established requirements of the quarantine regime has a critical level of risk that poses a threat of the spread of the disease,” stressed Alexey Tsoi.

  Fourth, the registration of cases of diseases in educational organizations: the number of close contacts will also increase significantly. For example, if one student in a class gets sick, then the whole class and teachers go to a 14-day quarantine only in the school, and there are also family contacts.

  “And if it is found that the sick person was in contact with someone outside the classroom, then, accordingly, quarantine will be imposed on these persons. Thus, even with the registration of one case, there is a high risk of quarantine in classes, even schools,” the minister said.

  Fifth, international experience today shows an increase in morbidity in full-time schools. In Germany, they switched to full-time education in August. Already, schools in many cities are being quarantined.

  Several states in the United States have closed schools for full-time education after testing positive for COVID-19 in children and staff. In England, France, Poland, dozens of schools have reported an outbreak of COVID-19, prompting some to close, while others have sent staff and students home to self-isolate. In South Korea, schools are returning to distance learning. Remain closed to students in schools and colleges and educational institutions in India.

  “Sixth, today it is too early to talk about a stable epidemiological situation in schools, since even one incubation period has not passed since September 1 - 14 days to assess the situation, taking into account online training in duty classes and schools with up to 180 students,” continued Alexey Tsoi.

  Seventh, one should not forget about the annual rise in the incidence of acute respiratory viral infections and influenza. Up to 70% of the incidence of ARVI and influenza is registered among children under 14 years of age. And children who have had ARVI and flu, due to a decrease in immunity, are most at risk of infection and COVID-19 disease.

  “We have a negative experience when we opened duty groups in kindergartens, and they were closed due to the registration of coronavirus infection there. That is, a very important moment for us now is to maintain the rate of decline that we have now. Therefore, we propose to keep the first quarter in this format. In the future, when we study how and what kind of morbidity we have in our organized teams, we will submit this issue to an interdepartmental commission and will additionally consider it,” the minister concluded.

Translated: Nurkabekova Alua, 301 group

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