The CDC shortened the social distance measure in schools, are we jumping in too soon?
Since the pandemic began in March 2020, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention has told the population to wear masks, wash their hands and stay six feet away from other people. Many people have taken this suggestion to heart and do their best to stay six feet away and not to congregate in a crowd of more than 10 people.
Now, the CDS is revamping their guideline for social distancing and suggesting that staying three feet from other people is sufficient for children in classrooms. Many school officials say the new three-feel rule gives them more flexibility in classrooms. The prior guideline forced schools to remove desks and stagger the sched ules to keep the number of students in one place to a minimum.
The change came from some schools ignoring the sixfeet rule and going with their own three-feet one. Greta Massetti leads the CDC’s community interventions task force and said there is no real proof that three-feet works any less than six-feet.
“We don’t really have the evidence that 6 feet is required in order to maintain low spread,” she said.
Massetti also said that since younger children are less likely to get seriously ill from the coronavirus and spread it, she is confident the new three-feet guideline is safe. Aren’t the guidelines to keep people from catching it at all? Are we putting our children in danger just because it “seems that children are less likely to get seriously ill?”
The new guideline also allows the schools to remove the plastic barriers between desks. Massetti said there is not much evidence that proved the barriers even worked in keeping transmission of the virus at bay.
The CDC did recommend keeping the six-feet rule in common areas, such as lobbies and where masks cannot be worn or activities with a lot of cheering or singing. They also recommended adults continue to stay six feet from other adults and students.
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said this is the next step to safely return to in-person instruction.
“Safe in-person instruction gives our kids access to critical social and mental health services that prepare them for the future, in addition to the education theyneed to succeed,” she said in a statement.
Massetti suggested for everybody to continue to wear masks because the spread is slowing. However, it has not stopped completely.