Telegraph readers debate face masks in schools
As part of the roadmap out of lockdown, the Government has said that face masks should be worn in the classroom when it is not possible for secondary school children to keep two metres apart.
In December last year, senior medics warned that face masks create a ‘climate of fear’ and are being used in schools in a way that breaches the World Health Organisation guidelines.
In response to the news that face masks could become the norm in Britain’s classrooms, there has been fierce criticism from those that work in education, with some teachers indicating that they could defy the advice on mask-wearing. Meanwhile, some parents have also been critical of the proposals, highlighting that masks could stunt children's development.
Where do you stand on the face masks in secondary schools debate? Read on for the best discussion points from our readers and share your own view in the comments section at the bottom of this article.
For
'If the Government had vaccinated key workers this wouldn't be an issue'
@Alison Dawson:
"A teacher friend of mine died in his early 50s from Covid in January. Before Christmas it went through the school he worked at like wildfire. So many staff were infected, many became unwell, and he died.
"If teachers are in small classrooms all day teaching 30 children, then is it really too much to ask for the children to wear masks to reduce transmission? Or are teachers' lives really worth so little?
"If the Government had vaccinated teachers (as well as other key workers) then this would not be an issue, but they chose not to do so. ONS figures from March-December 2020 showed that male secondary school teachers are at an elevated risk of death from Covid compared to men of the same age in other professions.
"I have children, but I think if they can reduce the transmission of Covid by wearing a mask then that is what they should do."
'If children can receive an education, then masks it has to be'
@Watchyour Six:
"If masks worn by children and teachers take away the potential for the unions to keep on arguing that returning to school isn't safe and children receive the education they badly need, then masks it has to be.
"Otherwise the nation will be in a perpetual doom loop."
'Mask-wearing has kept people safe'
@Richard Hubbard:
"My wife is a teacher in our local private school, mask-wearing was brought in for everyone last September and it has kept people safe. Everyone just gets on with it and gets the job done. There has been no drama and no moaning."
'Our grandson has no problem wearing a mask'
@David Kalton:
"Our grandson in Italy is six-years-old and has no problem, along with his classmates, wearing a mask all day in school. If it is no problem in Italy what is the difference here?"
'It's a small price to pay for an uninterrupted education'
@Mark Williams:
"Switzerland has not closed its schools and the older children wear masks. It's a very small price to pay for an uninterrupted education."
'Masks don't stop children from being children'
@Graeme Coulson
"My three-year-old granddaughter in Malaysia has been wearing a mask or visor for months in school. It hasn’t stopped her or her classmates from enjoying all the classroom activities on offer. Masks do not stop them from being children."
Against
'I'm dreading returning to school'
@Anna Dunham:
"I feel very strongly that I will not be able to teach effectively if myself or the pupils are wearing masks. After initially being so relieved that we were returning to school, I'm now dreading it."
'There's no consideration given to children with hearing issues'
@sylvie baxter:
"As usual no consideration given to children who have hearing issues. I have had single-sided deafness all my life and school was quite a difficult time for me.
"At least classes were much quieter than those I have observed in my working life. I rely on a mixture of hearing and lip reading.
"Mask wearing can be difficult for me and for a youngster in school in some of these horribly noisy classrooms trying to hear will be very difficult."
'How do children who are feeling lonely make friends?'
@Beverley Marshall:
"I cannot understand how the Government can impose the wearing of face masks on children who should be in school to learn and socialise with their friends.
"If the teacher can't see their face how do they know whether they have understood the lesson? How do they know how they are feeling? How do children who are feeling lonely make friends?"
'There's no clear justification'
@Andrea Webb:
"My children have been deprived of their education and all the enriching experiences and rites of passage of school life; had their GCSEs cancelled and are under constant pressure to perform as they are continually assessed as we still don’t know how this year’s grading will be awarded. And they are struggling with their mental and emotional health.
"They are finally ‘allowed’ back to school and now forced to wear a mask all day without any clear justification or explanation and no clear end date. I’m horrified with the Government for continuing to treat children so badly!"
'I can't see how it can be healthy'
@Melissa Whiffin:
"I am against face masks in secondary schools being mandatory as there is no evidence that it makes a significant difference, especially in children.
"I can't see how it can be healthy to wear one for the amount of time it would be needed to make it effective either."
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