Katherine Ellery says Whanganui Intermediate students who are absent from school can attend a daily online class. Photo / Bevan Conley
Katherine Ellery says Whanganui Intermediate students who are absent from school can attend a daily online class. Photo / Bevan Conley
Nearly all schools in the Whanganui, Taranaki and Manawatū regions are managing Covid-19 cases.
The Ministry of Education said as of Monday morning, 97 per cent of schools in the regions - including 72 primary schools, eight intermediates and 17 secondary schools - had recently-notified Covid cases.
Whanganui Intermediate principalKatherine Ellery said less than 5 per cent of students were active cases but there was still a large number away.
The 550-student school had 150 absences on Monday.
"A lot of that is down to the parents' decision to keep them at home until after the peak and after we get through this. We haven't seen some students very much at all this year, Ellery said.
"I'm quite impressed with the amount of students and teachers who have come back from those isolations without having contracted Covid-19. That's interesting."
Finding relievers for absent teachers was proving difficult.
"We have an average of two to three relievers in every day, which is massive," Ellery said.
"If this carries on we would have basically employed two extra full-time teachers all term."
Whanganui Girls' College deputy principal Nita Pond said while there had been a few Covid-19 cases at the school, things were being managed really well.
"Our students have been fantastic and so has our community.
"Communication is good both ways, which is important because obviously, things keep changing. We go from 10 to seven days' isolation and we don't have casual contacts anymore, only close contacts."
Pond said there would be more cases to come.
"Whanganui is almost in its own little bubble and could be a week or two behind the rest of the country in regards to peaking.
"We have plans in place to deal with different scenarios and we're trying to tick along as normally as possible."
Teaching, learning and wellbeing were the key things the school remained focused on, Pond said.
There hadn't been issues around students spreading the virus among themselves.
"If kids are wearing masks at school and in classes we are minimising that risk.
"Our students need to be commended for how onboard they are with things."
As for the teachers' wellbeing, Pond said it was "so far so good", but plans had been formed in the event a number of them were affected by Covid-19.
Whanganui Girls' College deputy principal Nita Pond. Photo / NZME
Ellery said students who weren't at school could attend a daily online class.
"I think we have around 50 registered for that and our deputy principal does a wonderful job there."
There was a certain amount of anxiety and worry amongst teachers.
"Some have little ones and they don't know what they're taking home.
"Teachers have done everything they have to do for the betterment of everyone else. They are all triple-vaccinated, and I think it would have been nice if the schools had been supplied with some Rat tests.
"They need to know that they and their whānau are safe as well."
In the Whanganui, Taranaki and Manawatū regions, 65 early learning centres are also dealing with cases.
First Years manager/owner Katrina Culhane said a couple of families were isolating and a few more were choosing to keep their kids at home.
"We've definitely got the cases, but it's parents who have it. They keep the kids at home, and then the kids get it.
"There isn't child-to-child transmission in the centre."
Keith Street Primary School principal Linda Ireton. Photo / Bevan Conley
Keith Street School had only two confirmed cases so far, principal Linda Ireton said.
"We've been fairly fortunate so far.
"Our kids are really resilient and they are just going about their daily business.
"If that means they are at school then they're loving being here learning, and if that means they are at home then we are providing the resources for that."
While it was a "wait and see game", Keith Street would continue with what it knew to be best practice, Ireton said.
"Like any other school with cases, we've followed the recommended health and safety steps from the ministries of health and education."
Ireton said it was important to maintain what school looked and felt like as much as possible.
Like Whanganui Intermediate, Keith Street was finding it hard to get relievers when staff were self-isolating to care for a partner or a child.
"We are just trying to manage the best way we can for continuity," Ireton said.
"Obviously children are kept home if a parent has to self-isolate. We have got a fair bit of that."
Mask wearing among children who were required to had been amazing, Ireton said.
"Like any human, you need the odd prompt - 'not below your nose' - but that's probably all of us, isn't it?"
