Corona current: tens of thousands of students in quarantine

Significantly more corona infections are currently being reported in schools. According to the Tagesschau, tens of thousands of students are currently in quarantine.

The corona pandemic now has Germany fully under control again. The country reports new negative records every week, and the number of new infections is increasing. A second lockdown is now intended to curb the spread of the corona virus again – but schools and daycare centers have so far been excluded from this.

But it is precisely in these institutions that the number of infections is currently increasing. As reported by the Tagesschau, among other things, tens of thousands of students and teachers across Germany are currently in quarantine.

500,000 students in quarantine in Bavaria

Several federal states are reporting corona outbreaks in schools and daycare centers. According to the Tagesschau, the number of infections among schoolchildren in North Rhine-Westphalia is said to have quintupled from 98 to 522 within one week. In Hamburg, every fourth new infection could be attributed to a school last week. According to NDR, there are currently around 700 cases in 200 schools. In response to a request from the Tagesschau, Hessen reported almost 21,300 quarantine cases among schoolchildren on November 3. Bavaria is said to have previously reported 500,000 students in quarantine, as Der Spiegel reports.

Schools closed after corona cases

As of the beginning of November, 165 schools across Germany are said to have been closed due to corona cases, as the German Teachers Association announced according to Der Spiegel.

Now a new debate on the closure of schools and daycare centers is likely to be imminent. Because the current figures clearly show that the coronavirus is spreading uncontrollably in schools and daycare centers despite hygiene measures.

The main aim of the current lockdown strategy, with the further opening of schools and childcare, is to relieve parents. They should be able to continue working and know that the children are being cared for. The role children play in the spread of infection has not yet been conclusively investigated. It remains to be seen whether and how the current corona cases in schools will affect the measures of the second lockdown.

Sources used: Tagesschau, NDR, Der Spiegel