Infection outbreaks in schools raise fears of 4th virus wave
A front gate of Gwangmun High School in Gangdong District, Seoul, where group infection among soccer team players took place, is closed, Tuesday. Yonhap
By Bahk Eun-ji
Coronavirus infection outbreaks in schools have put the health authorities on alert as they occurred less than a week after in-person classes were started for the new school year.
According to the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SMOE), 16 students at Gwangmun High School in Gangdong District in Seoul were confirmed to have been infected with COVID-19 as of Tuesday.
Fifteen of them belong to a soccer team, which is operated for the school by a private sports institute, and officials presume that the mass infection occurred during the team's recent camp training, where the students stayed and dined together, the SMOE said.
Additionally, however, there have been a series of new cases detected among teachers and students nationwide.
On Jeju Island, a teacher at a middle school and students at a senior high school were confirmed to have contracted the virus, March 7. The schools have been temporarily closed and have reverted to online classes.
A high school student in Samcheok, Gangwon Province, also tested positive March 7, after showing symptoms March 4, two days after the school reopened. All students and faculty members have now undergone tests.
In Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, six workers at a food factory were confirmed infected, as were four of their elementary-school aged children.
Students wearing masks take a class while keeping at a distance from each other at an elementary school in Gangdong District in Seoul, in this March. 2 photo. Korea Times file
But despite the growing number of infections among students and teachers, the education ministry plans to further expand the number of in-person classes in line with a new social distancing system to be announced soon. The plan came out of concerns over the side effects of extended remote learning, such as a widening learning gap.
Kindergarteners, first and second graders at elementary schools and high school seniors have been attending in-person classes every day since March 2. The school attendance cap was also eased and students in other grades are also attending more in-person classes per week than last year.
However, concerned educators, parents and some lawmakers are urging the government to allow teachers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine first to prevent group infections at schools. The nation's current vaccination programs do not include people aged under 18.
“Teachers should be included in the first group of the nation's vaccination program,” said Rep. Kang Deuk-gu of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea during a recent press conference.
“The education ministry and health authorities should actively discuss whether to inoculate teachers as soon as possible so that the number of in-person classes can be expanded smoothly.”
Meanwhile, the country's daily new coronavirus cases reverted to over 400.
According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, 446 new cases were detected for Monday, including 427 local infections, raising the total caseload to 93,263. Three more deaths were reported, raising the total to 1,645 with a fatality rate of 1.76 percent.