Amanda Adkins: Our children need to return to school and attend classes in person
We are days away from what should have been an exciting rite of passage across the Kansas City area — the first day of school. Yet here we are, uncertain about not just when the school year will begin, but more important, what it will look like.
Parents are frustrated by the prospect of an already-delayed school year beginning entirely remotely, as it will for Shawnee Mission School District students. As a mother with 15 years of experience in the health care sector, I agree with the American Academy of Pediatrics: Our goal should be getting students safely back into classrooms.
Research suggests that children, particularly middle school and high school students, will contract and spread the virus. As such, we need to consider how schools reopen through a health care lens to ensure our community is safe and thriving. Community participation will be key in any successful reopening. Public health recommendations and science should drive our decisions.
When you keep children at home, there are many negative effects on their education, health care and social needs. Parents and teachers worry about how far behind children might fall become without proper educational support. We recognize children learn best when they are physically present in the classroom. Community leaders should consider how decisions impact education gaps between higher- and lower-achieving students.
A lack of social engagement has a negative impact on mental health. Anxiety and depression visits at primary care offices are on the rise. Nutrition and other basic needs — access to food, exercise and support services such as the internet — may not be met when schools are not physically open. Pediatricians worry about missing the at-risk child.
School reopening plans should require the use of masks, set up facilities to ensure social distancing, remind students about good hygiene habits, and facilitate properly-ventilated instructional areas. With practice, even the youngest of children can be taught to wear masks, similar to any other learned behavior. Teachers, too, need the proper tools to be able to engage students in this new environment. We need to be mindful, listen to their concerns and equip them to teach safely.
We also need to take into consideration additional resources that might be needed to support families who do not feel comfortable with in-person learning at this time. There will be setbacks, even with the best of planning. Children will become infected with the novel coronavirus, but the current research suggests they will handle it well.
Just recently, my own family, including our two high-school-aged children, personally navigated the complexity of being exposed to a positive COVID-19 case. Parents must be transparent with their schools by reporting exposures, getting children tested and quarantining when necessary. We took these steps with the help of our pediatrician and support of our schools. Our transparency, in cooperation with the schools, protected the health of our community, students and teachers.
As a mother and businesswoman, I know the struggles families are experiencing as they try to meet the needs of their children and their careers. We cannot expect the economy to recover when parents are forced to choose between their jobs and their children’s education. Similarly, we cannot expect our children to succeed educationally when they are kept away from the very environments in which they thrive. We must demand our leaders take the education of our children and the strength of our economy seriously. It is time to get our kids safely back into classrooms.
Amanda Adkins is the Republican candidate for U.S. House of Representatives in Kansas’ 3rd Congressional District. Pediatrician Mary M. Tyson of Johnson County Pediatrics, an affiliate of Children’s Mercy, contributed to this piece.
This story was originally published August 21, 2020 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Amanda Adkins: Our children need to return to school and attend classes in person."