After much stormy debate, as states the world over slacken their self-imposed lockdowns, they confront a bleak economic landscape and a strikingly unfamiliar world. In Asia, governments pledge billions in stimulus money, yet continue to downplay the reopening of schools. This is unacceptable and demands an urgency equal to other national priorities. Massive injections of cash into the economy are no doubt imperative. While sweeping curfews and travel curbs checked the spread of COVID-19, they also scythed through commerce and shot unemployment levels through the roof. For this reason, many private schools face a fiscal crunch and without state support will plausibly close their doors forever. What’s worse, the lockdowns produced average-to-woeful results, with only Vietnam and Taiwan scoring high on containment. Nutrition and social support are other unsung virtues of schools By Jerrica Fatima Ann In this “new normal”, the US and certain European states have reopened schools with novel standard operating procedures (SOPs) they hope to refine with field data. However, sans practicality, parents and teachers fret policymakers are rashly upping the risk of children contracting the virus. The National Association of Head Teachers (UK) says implementing the SOPs-precisely those of physical distancing-are a “massive problem”, all the more in overcrowded and under-funded schools. This begs the question: should Asian children return to school before a vaccine is widely available? The Philippines, for instance, recently announced it would board up institutes until further notice. And if we pursue otherwise, how do we make school safe for them? These are tricky questions given the vast wealth gaps on our continent and require bespoke answers. Overall, I argue the rewards of reopening schools as soon as possible outweigh the costs, both social and economic. First, it is necessary we agree that education is an innate human right. In lawful societies, besides securing the lives and livelihoods of citizens, the government is duty-bound to educate them. A failure to prioritize literacy leads to a people unequipped to prosper in wealth and mind. This is a hard fact. The bottom-line is we must bust the myth that advances in communications technology make homeschooling an easy substitute for brick and mortar schools. And that such a scenario begets few material or emotional costs. While the pandemic forces more adults to work from home, and online learning is ever more accessible, parents are struggling to balance jobs with teaching their kids, a recent Insider Intelligence feature revealed. This flattens the learning curve of children to an alarming degree, and in special needs cases may cause irreversible harm. Likewise, there is the question of individual motivation. Children today may be tech-savvy, but we often hear stories of virtual truancy and missed homework. It is silly to expect they embrace online learning solely because it involves the Internet, which ordinarily entertains them. Also, few schools possess the technological infrastructure or the human capital to deploy online learning effectively. And what of underprivileged children? In many Asian countries where sizable populations straddle the poverty line, clean water and uninterrupted power are luxuries, what to say of broadband internet and laptops. To worsen matters, affordable state-funded education for such youths is their only ticket out of lack. Nutrition and social support are other unsung virtues of schools. According to the Human Rights Watch and China Global Television Network, the pandemic has deprived millions of poor children of wholesome meals they received in school. Also, the economic free-fall that grips the globe has driven great numbers into poverty, and magnified incidents of domestic abuse in which children are most vulnerable. On the flip-side, those opposed to resuming the school year make valid points. A New York Times piece from late May reported that underlying health conditions in children worry doctors. In their opinion, most schools are unprepared to receive students in the usual numbers, and the patchy application of safety codes will endanger their lives and those of the parents and school staff. However, studies worldwide reveal children, for reasons unknown, are less likely to contract the virus. The weightier issues here are of piecemeal funding and the oppressive SOPs of social distancing and hygiene, which children cannot uphold. Of the many roadmaps I reviewed, the one crafted by the Australian Department of Health appears most workable. Instead of singularly stressing physical distance, the plan urges students and staff to practice rigorous hygiene. It also urges teachers to arrange classes outdoors as much as possible and to ventilate classrooms by throwing open the windows. This brings us to the following dilemma: while adolescents and teenagers may accept such restrictions, what of preschoolers? Anyone who deals with children aged six-and-under knows laying rules is the surest way to invite rebellion. Likewise, social interaction in preschools is key to developing their emotional intelligence. Young children, we know, stay engaged and learn best through hands-on activities. For this reason, I believe turning preschools into vibrant dungeons won’t yield the desired results. The best solution to manage returning preschoolers is by gamifying the safety guidelines. How? For starters, let children make their own masks, DIY, and you won’t need to coerce their cooperation. If teachers can design fun activities around the guidelines, I guarantee they will observe students follow along without complaint. Here, it is essential that teachers, too, follow protocols without fail as children instinctively model adult behavior. To summarize, all evidence suggests we cannot hunker down and outlast COVID-19. Perhaps, like other respiratory illnesses such as influenza, we have to learn to live with it. Thus, denying children a timely education will inevitably create greater socio-economic imbalances. Therefore, Asian policymakers must forthwith bring forward a thorough back-to-school blueprint. To accomplish such will require deep coordination with educators, schools, and local officials. For, in trying to keep children safe, we must not ruin their lives. The writer is a Malaysian early childhood educator based in Islamabad and editor of www.imageofachild.com