Despite official advice, parents debate whether to pull children out of school

Louise Gough's seven-year-old son Magnus didn't need prompting when asked why he was going to school when many classmates had been withdrawn by parents fearing the coronavirus.Louise Gough with her son Magnus outside Annandale Public School believes her son is better off at school now than at home.Ms Gough said the family had been tracking the advice given by the Prime Minister and the Chief Medical Officer Dr Brendan Murphy to keep children at school.

"Schools are not identified sites of high transmission versus the recent wedding [where many guests were infected]. It is still a low risk," Ms Gough said. While the family had restricted its movements, Ms Gough said they were probably more at risk of catching the virus as they went to work or were out in the community than their son was at school.

Polarising views on the topic had become "a line in the sand" which could end friendships, said a parent who wouldn't be identified.

juliepower School boycott!! Join the Fb event here and lets keep pushing Slomo to shut the schools now. Share with all the parents you know including those who are already keeping their kids at home!

juliepower The whole world is closing down schools. Our cases have arisen from 100 to over 1000 in 11 days. If we don’t act NOW, things will be MUCH worse. More than 2500 doctors signed open letter urging schools to close down. Even the UK now changed their position and will close schools!

juliepower They both have a credibility problem. Morrison refuses to answer questions he doesn’t like. Are his children going to school? Why was the CMO still shaking hands until a premier refused to do so?

juliepower Morrison has pulled his kids out of school over a week ago.

juliepower Porkies re Singapore who test the school kids 2 times and disinfect classes. Not happening in Aus. Real epidemiologists say kids home and lickdowns r the best way. Murphy remember is a kidney doctor. Morrisons big ego is in the way. His kids school or online learning ?

juliepower It's an epic tragedy waiting to unfold as 5 million students could unleash the virus in numbers beyond our comprehension. The students need their parents & grandparents & teachers well & alive. Who will look after the kids when the parents get sick ? (or die)The risk is terrible

juliepower Our stupid Govt has decided only gatherings of over 100 are considered unsafe but schools have more! If 2 people meet & 1 has Covid 19 then both have it !So why are schools open ?100 isn't a magic protective number. Look what happened to Italy ! Do we want that ? SHUT SCHOOLS NOW

juliepower I feel for you. Australia can see what is happening to Italy so why are we following their tragic example !We have 5 million students ! Imagine the potential exponential growth of infection ! Students need their teachers, parents,Grandparents alive & well. This is insanity

juliepower Also hoarding ain’t stopped

juliepower I’m troubled that we don’t appear to be taking notice of what is happening in the UK now

juliepower NO SCHOOL. PROTECT THR CHILDREN THE TEACHERS THE PARENTS. CHILDREN ARE CAPABLE OF SPREADING IT. USE YOUR BRAINS. I’m surprised Scott Morrison is even in the country and didn’t run off like the fires 🙄🙄🙄🙄

juliepower Do you trust the medical expert advice keeping ‘low risk’ schools open Same ‘experts’ allowed low risk PrincessRuby ship to dock in Sydney & disembark yesterday, before discovering covid19 passengers NSWHealth trying to contact & isolate all 2700 passengers coronavirusaus

juliepower Officials are taking the whole general public into consideration rather than focusing on case by case issues. So if you can have your kids at home, do it without consulting with ‘officials’. Better safe than sorry 😐

juliepower Keep your kids safe. The best place to do that is at home. 2500 people got off a ship in Sydney on Wednesday. Covid 19 cases were on that ship. Madness. Our leaders are always two weeks behind. Act now!

juliepower Please close your schools now. Don’t leave it too late. And in the interim if you can take your children out if school. StaySafeStayHome

juliepower Urging us to listen to advice from experts -we are! The PM is not an expert on anything - has shown he cannot manage a crisis. The health minister is not reliable at all. normanswan billbowtell are the most reliable sources of info.

juliepower I’m a mild asthmatic so we’ve decided to pull our daughter out of school a week early. We can’t risk her to be the transmitter in the family. Hubby already wfh & I’m the process of doing the same.

juliepower The health of children and teachers first.

juliepower Close your schools, please, we did it too late in France, now look at the result:

juliepower OMG imagine being the CMO and people think you're a tool

juliepower It'll be school til it finally blows up

juliepower Frantic? Thoughtful decisions about extended families’ health that doesn’t prioritize the Morrison government’s longevity. Loaded language, “news” source.

juliepower SCHOOL! Listen to the experts!!!

juliepower You need a physical distance with the others, but students don't need, the government wants to tell us students in Australia are not human?

juliepower My wife is a school Principal: if you want to keep your kids safe, keep them at home. The belief in creating a ‘herd immunity’ through kids is criminal as it endangers everyone but this is Brendon Murphy’s plan. Keep them safe, keep them home.

juliepower When they mentioned kid are not going to be effected by covid19 according to hubei (China) record. I think they miss one thing. it’s during school holiday in China. So all kids were stay at home with parents during the outbreak.

bencubby juliepower It is so simple. If you are able to, keep your kids at home. Here endeth this message. coronavirusau coronavirus

juliepower It's totally up to the parents easy stop making it a huge issue. It's up to you...

juliepower Imperial College “We predict that school and university closure ... when combined with population-wide social distancing ... further amplify the breaking of social contacts between households, and thus supress transmission.”

juliepower When it was students coming from China or HK they had to have medical checks at a minimum. But now it’s hit Oz it’s not necessary?

juliepower Yeah, there wasn’t much debate when a school parent tested positive at my grandson’s school. ShutTheSchoolsNow

juliepower Parents should know better!

juliepower Professor Murphy said on Insiders there had been very few reports of symptomatic infection in children and while they might spread it in schools “it also creates a herd immunity”.

juliepower ShutTheSchoolsNow

juliepower Just take them out. I can't comprehend this. If you want to take them out, do it, otherwise leave them there. Why all the drama?

juliepower Leave it up to the parents. If kids are able to stay home, then let them stay home. By the time ScottMorrisonMP closes schools it will be too late.

juliepower Home !!!

juliepower No school

juliepower Give parents the right to select .

juliepower It should be up to parents and schools should give them the ability to use internet teaching or class room teaching

juliepower School or home school, either way PM, leave this to parents. That gives a better chance of 4 meters? 1.5 meters? You name it Scomo!

juliepower Home!

juliepower Can you trust them to be 100% to know what they're doing? For me no. I've worked at a primary school and see how sickness spreads. Kids bring it home. So my opinion.

juliepower How about partially close the schools. People who can take care of their children stay at home. Decrease the risks in schools.

juliepower So call experts putting kids in school and daycare in danger

juliepower No School

juliepower Really? Despite the overwhelming evidence that School age Children have more chance of dying from a lightening strike than this? Wow.

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