Parents demand face-to-face classes in September

"We understand that the measures taken during the State of Emergency were necessary to control the Covid-19 pandemic and are also aware of the effort made by the Educational Community to adapt to the new situation,” it states. “We want our children to re-exercise the right to face-to-face education because personal relationships in childhood with guardians and peers are fundamental to their well-being and personal growth and because the experience has clearly shown the advantages of face-to-face education. Obviously, we understand that for this, protocols of preventive measures will have to be adopted, as well as of control of possible cases or exceptional situations during the duration of the pandemic.”

They have set out educational, socio-economic and epidemiological reasons to argue their point, highlighting the risks to children's physical and psychological health in prolonged confinement and also pointed out that Spain has the highest level of school dropout in Europe which they claim “could be exacerbated by non-contact teaching."

Low Risk

The families are adamant that “compulsory confinement has exacerbated inequalities and alienated some students from the Education System and that the effects are more harmful on children and young people of lower socioeconomic status, because not all families have the resources for telematic education.”

They also claim "there is growing evidence that children and adolescents do not suffer from coronavirus and have a very low risk of transmitting it."