Coronavirus Australia: Education Minister reveals when schools will return to normal

Today marks the start of a not-so-normal Term 2 for schools in Victoria, with the majority of students now learning from home.

And this morning, Prime Minister Scott Morrison pleaded with teachers right around the country to stay in classrooms, stating: “Children need you.”

“He wanted to send a message to all those teachers out there who will be teaching our children, whether it be in the classroom or whether it be online, a message of thanks to say how important your role is during this pandemic,” said Dan Tehan, Minister for Education.

“There’s going to be a lot that we suffer from over the next six months, but the Prime Minister has been incredibly firm that he wants to ensure that our children don’t suffer from losing their education during this time.”

How sustainable is remote learning?

Each state and territory is taking its own approach when it comes to education, as they try to strike a balance between keeping schools open and giving the option for students to learn remotely.

But as the weeks turn into months for the students who are learning from home, the question becomes one of sustainability for the average Australian family.

“It’s going to be a real challenge, and that’s why we are imploring all Australians to do the right thing so we can flatten this curve,” Tehan said.

“One of the first things we’d love to be able to do if we can flatten the curve is re-open our schools for all students, so they can go back and get back into the continuity of learning that we know produces the excellent results for our children.

“We’e not there at this moment, so we need to be patient and work with our schools, work with our teachers, and work with our principals.

“If we can keep flattening the curve, our hope is we’ll be able to get the schools open for everyone sooner rather than later right across the nation.”

When will schools go back to normal?

“For each state and territory, it will be different,” Tehan said.

“What we are hoping is in four weeks’ time, we’ll be able to reassess and have a look at where we are at.

Originally published on 7News.