Last year, Trenace Dorsey-Hollins’ 5-year-old daughter was frequently ill. Dorsey-Hollins adhered to the school’s protocols and kept her at home when she had a cough, sore throat, or any other symptoms until she fully recovered.

At the end of the year, the Fort Worth, Texas school requested a meeting with her to discuss her daughter’s frequent absences.

Amid the pandemic, schools advised parents and children to remain at home if any symptoms of illness were present. Despite the crisis being over, she noted that there has been no clarification on whether these guidelines have been modified.

“It’s very perplexing,” she stated.

According to the mother of a 5- and 13-year-old, previously, it was acceptable to send a child to school if they didn’t have a fever above 100. However, now, even if they have a cough or sneezing, it may be better to keep them at home. This raises the question, which approach is the recommended one?

The conflicting recommendations regarding when to keep children home have contributed to the widespread issue of chronic school absences. This has caused confusion among many and is believed to be a contributing factor to the nationwide problem. In response, some advocates, schools, and even the state of California are promoting the idea of sending children to school even if they have minor ailments like a runny nose, lice, or pink eye.

According to Hedy Chang, the executive director of Attendance Works, families should be informed that they no longer have to keep their children at home if they show any signs of illness. The nonprofit organization, which focuses on improving attendance, has released its own recommendations, advising parents to send their children to school as long as they are able to participate in daily activities.

Chang stated that we must now reconnect with children and families and alter their perspectives on the matter.

The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests remaining at home if experiencing a fever, vomiting or diarrhea, or if students are unable to fully engage in classroom activities due to illness.

However, numerous districts have more extensive guidelines, outlining a wide range of symptoms that should be considered when determining whether a student should attend school. For example, the Fort Worth Independent School District, where Dorsey-Hollins’ youngest daughter is enrolled in kindergarten, recommends keeping a child at home if they experience a cough, sore throat, or rash. Additionally, students must be free of fever for 24 hours without taking medication before returning to school, according to the district’s guidelines.

The Austin Independent School District in Texas has identified “redness of the eyes,” “unclear rash,” and “open, draining sores” as valid reasons for a student to stay home. In New York City schools, students with lice are not allowed to attend class. In Maryland’s Montgomery County, it is advised to keep a child home if they have a stomachache, a “pale or flushed” face, or if there is a “thick yellow discharge” coming from their nose.

Finding the right balance is difficult, and it’s understandable that different places would approach it differently, said Claire McCarthy, a pediatrician at Boston Children’s Hospital and professor at Harvard Medical School.

McCarthy stated that every school or school district has a varying level of acceptance for sickness.

Many parents are left feeling confused by it all.

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Malika Elwin, a mother of a second-grader on Long Island, described it as a challenge.

She has chosen to keep her daughter at home for a longer period of time, even though her daughter is feeling better, in order to avoid exposing other children or putting extra responsibility on the teacher due to her daughter’s runny nose. However, she now regrets this decision as her daughter is feeling completely fine and is running around all day at home.

If a person receives a positive result for COVID-19, the CDC advises them to stay at home and isolate for a minimum of five days. However, the directives given by states and schools differ greatly. In certain school systems, students who test positive may attend school as long as they do not exhibit symptoms.

Trenace Dorsey-Hollins expressed that it can be difficult for parents in her situation to stay organized.

The person inquired if it was acceptable to attend school while having a cough, as long as there is no fever and no positive COVID test results.

As a result of the pandemic, schools shutting down caused students to lag behind in their academic progress. The prolonged absences due to the pandemic have made it even more difficult for them to catch up. As a response, some officials have reconsidered their leniency towards sickness. In the 2021-2022 academic year, over a quarter of students missed at least 10% of the school year, which is an increase from the pre-pandemic rate of 15%.

Skipping too many days of school can have negative consequences for students, such as hindering their ability to learn how to read and potentially preventing them from graduating. Additionally, students who are absent also miss out on important benefits like meals, socializing with peers and supportive adults, physical activity, and access to mental health support and medical care. Essentially, missing school can have detrimental effects on students’ overall well-being.

When a class has a significant amount of chronic absenteeism, it negatively impacts the students who are present because the teacher must use time to reorient students who have been absent.

Last year in California, 25% of students missed 10% of the school year due to illness. This fall, the state implemented a new strategy for sick-day guidelines. Rather than solely instructing when a child should stay home, the guidelines outline situations in which a slightly unwell child may still attend school.

In general, students should remain at home if their symptoms hinder their ability to fully engage in regular activities. However, it is acceptable for a student to attend school with diarrhea as long as they can manage to use the restroom when necessary. Mild cold symptoms, a sore throat, a mild rash, or pinkeye are all considered acceptable for attending school.

Additionally, California does not require a 24-hour waiting period after experiencing a fever or vomiting before returning to school. Being free of a fever or vomiting for one night is sufficient.

Boston Public Schools has adopted a similar position in its online guidelines for parents. The online advice states, “Respiratory infections are frequent. If the child is not experiencing a fever, reduced activity, or other symptoms, it is not necessary for them to stay home.”

Noha Aboelata, the director of the Roots Community Health Center in Oakland, California, expressed concern that the change in guidance could disproportionately affect low-income communities and people of color. This is because individuals in these communities may be more likely to live in multi-generational households, use crowded public transportation, or have inadequate ventilation in their homes. As a result, when individuals are out in public while sick, they could potentially put their at-risk family members in danger.

She had expected that the pandemic would teach people to stay home when they are contagious and to take care of themselves and their families when they are sick, even after the public health emergency ends. However, she now feels that the situation is going in the opposite direction.

However, transforming the mindset surrounding absences in schools extends beyond simply providing instructions.

According to Tracy Schmidt, who supervises attendance for the county Office of Education, certain schools in San Diego County seem to be unaware of the recent guidance from California that permits students to attend school even if they are slightly ill.

However, some have embraced this approach and are discussing symptoms with parents who contact them about their sick children, encouraging them to bring their child in for evaluation to see how they are doing. This offers optimism that as more schools and parents become familiar with this advice, students will have fewer absences.

She expressed that school is the paramount location for our children to be. We must move away from the mindset forced upon us during the pandemic due to the public safety crisis.

Source: voanews.com