The situation of violence and uncertainty that we have experienced in recent weeks has forced the Government to take measures on different fronts. One of them, which may not be on the radar of political actors, is the suspension of classes, and then their return to the virtual modality.

Guayas schools will return to in-person classes starting this Wednesday

Currently, according to the orders of the Ministry of Education, three provinces and several cantons maintain this format. We assume that these are the ones with the highest number of incidents and dangers. We understand, of course, that this is a measure intended to protect children and young people from a latent threat and provide their parents with relative calm. However, faced with a necessary and urgent solution, a new concern is emerging that is floating in the environment and that has already affected us as a result of the 2020 pandemic: the emotional stability of the population of children and young people.

(…) there should be programs… that deal with the physical safety of students and strengthen emotional safety…

And for many children, closing the school means forcing them to be confined in an environment of frustration, loneliness and, why not say, violence. This is a consequence of the unfavorable reality in one’s own home, where scarcity, family difficulties and fear come together. A special mention for those minors who are involved in the consumption of alcohol, drugs and distribution networks or are part of gangs.

As a result of the pandemic, mental health experts have reported an alarming number of children showing signs of stress, anxiety and depression. Institutions and organizations dealing with the protection of the rights of minors have also expressly reiterated that classes should be the last thing that should be suspended.

When will the school year on the coast and the Galapagos end? They answered this on Monday, January 22, from the Ministry of Education

In this matter, as in others, we are faced with a problem that has many aspects. Therefore, its solution does not depend only on the ministry that regulates education or on the police controlling the doors of schools, nor on the Government that allocates more funds for formal education. It is an issue that must be treated as a whole, included in the critical reality of the country.

On the one hand, it is understood that the suspension of classes is a response to an emergency situation, which considering the dates on the Coast, where most of the mentioned cantons are concentrated, it could be said that it does not have a big impact, because the school year is nearing its end. Obviously, the greater good is privileged. The serious thing would be that after the “fear” passes, the return to classes remains under the same conditions of the previous anxiety.

“We are ready for scenarios of the end of the school year on the Coast virtually or in person”

This is why there should be medium- and long-term programs that deal with the physical safety of students, and at the same time strengthen emotional safety, which, in such a complicated time as the one we live in, will certainly be threatened.

Obviously, this requires the coordinated work of the state, organizations, schools, colleges and parents, who work for the benefit of those who will one day be citizens of this country.

Seen this way, every effort pays off. (OR)