So, looking at the "to teach or not to teach" situation we have a few things to address.
By not teaching we get
Mental health issues for children.
Children missing out on education.
Children missing out on social and emotional growth.
Children subjected to physical and seksual abuse at home.
Parents unable to work which is not good for the economy.
By teaching we get
A vast reduction in mental health issues for children.
Children not missing out on education.
Children not missing out on social and emotional growth.
Children not subjected to physical and seksual abuse at home.
Parents able to work which is good for the economy.
The above shows the (dis-) advantages of kids being in school. A knock on effect of them going back to school would be parents feeling less inadequate because they no longer have to "teach" their kids things they don't always understand themselves.
Another thing that is bad for kids is the opening and then closing again of schools or individual classes being sent home because the teacher is ill.
What those in power need to do is to decide what the priority for the kids is and then take the necessary decisions for their, and the country's, future prosperity.
My opinion is that safeguarding teachers through vaccination will enable the reopening of schools and that will have beneficial effects on the mental health of the kids, the mental health of the parents, the economy in the short term as the parents can work and the economy in the long term as it will give kids the chance to catch up somewhat on what they've missed thus far (many won't ever get back to where they would have been without the closing of schools, if any) or, at worst, not fall further behind than they already are.
Weighing up the pros and cons, it does seem to make sense to vaccinate teachers to the benefit of very many others as well as that of the country.
I'd like to suggest another group for priority vaccination. Overweight (BMI of over 25) males in the age range 60 to 75. It seems they make up the majority of patients in the ICU. A Dutch ICU specialist has said that vaccinating that group would see 90% less Covid patients needing ICU treatment. If the aim is to reduce the stress on hospitals in general and ICUs in particlular then this would appear to be a genuine priority group.



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