This Coronavirus is making people crazy. The supermarket shelves are almost all bare. It is like an apocalypse. There are only a few dozen infections in my county of 10,000,000 people, but the reaction is an overreaction.
I think that pulling the reigns on this disease make more sense than a complete panic driven overreaction. If there are a few infections, then social distancing. If there are more then shutting down larger events. If there are even more, then perhaps what I am terming “social thinning.”
Social Thinning
What does this mean? Many schools are shutting down when there are hardly any cases in their area. This will cause horrible harm to parents, students, and the local economy, but will not prevent more than a handful of cases if there are relatively few infections. What I think is a better idea is to have alternate educational systems for those with flexibility.
The idea is that parents cannot always accommodate their kids at home during the day and also might not have food. Additionally, it will be bad for students to miss education. These are three compelling reasons to keep schools open.
Recommendations
1. Have a percentage of students stay home whose families elect for them to stay home. There could be teachers assigned with special program for these home based students with hourly phone interaction, assignments, and internet based help as well.
2. Have a percentage of students study outside or in the gym to free up space inside for social distancing. Learning outside allows students to get fresh air rather than germ filled recycled air. It also allows for people to be put six feet apart and not run out of space.
3. Smaller class sizes would allow for people to spread out.
4. Disinfecting surfaces and washing hands regularly.
5. Taking temperatures regularly.
6. Quarantine room classes for students with symptoms who cannot go home for whatever reason.
7. During recess, students should keep a distance from each other.
Item one, two and three are examples of social thinning. You still go to class, but the number of students will have been thinned out and people will be a bit farther away from each other, hence slowing the rate of infection.
Social thinning — it’s nothing to sneeze (or cough) at!
