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Editor's note
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Whether children should be physically going to school has been one of the most controversial issues debated in Australia since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Australian Health Protection Principal Committee – the federal government’s expert advisory group for public health emergencies and management – has consistently maintained it is safe for children to keep attending school.
But this confused many Australians, as it seemed inconsistent with the other public health measures put in place, including banning gatherings of more than 100 people – a number that exceeds many school populations.
Not helping the confusion was the conflicting health advice coming from Victoria’s chief health officer, who said children should not be going to school unless there were sufficient reasons, such as their parents being essential workers.
But as we start to flatten the curve, paediatric infectious disease specialists Asha Bowen, Chris Blyth and Kirsty Short write that the broader social distancing measures apply differently to schools. New evidence confirms what we knew before – children do not become infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, like adults, and they do not spread it in the way they spread the flu. The infection rarely spreads from child to child,
or from child to adult.
In outlining all the evidence, the authors also note that in Australian schools that closed due to confirmed cases, there have been no secondary infections. Kids who sat next to others in class and had COVID-19, did not infect their classmates.
The health evidence is sound – as we flatten the curve, it is safe for Australia’s children to return to school.
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Sasha Petrova
Section Editor: Education
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Top story
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Asha Bowen, Telethon Kids Institute; Christopher Blyth, University of Western Australia; Kirsty Short, The University of Queensland
More evidence has come in and confirmed what the government has been saying for some time. Children do get infected much less than adults with COVID-19 and when they do, they hardly spread it.
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Shutterstock
Lyndal Collins, Monash University
If you haven't already, join the sourdough revolution. Being home means you can tend to your starter, satisfy carb cravings, bake healthier bread and impress your friends on social media.
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Schopier/Wikimedia
John Harris, UNSW; Mark Lintermans, University of Canberra
The NSW government is soon expected to grant environmental approval to Snowy 2.0. But that process should be halted.
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Health + Medicine
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Fiona Stanley, Telethon Kids Institute; Daniel McAullay, Edith Cowan University; Sandra Eades, Curtin University
Large households, poor health literacy, not enough soap and vaccines, scepticism of mainstream services. These are some of the reasons urban Aboriginal people face increased risks.
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Susan Collings, University of Sydney; Margaret Spencer, University of Sydney
Self-isolation and physical distancing only add to the problems for mothers with an intellectual disability who are at risk of failing to get the help they need.
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Politics + Society
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Tess Newton Cain, Griffith University
The crisis is a chance to change the Pacific Step-up from something Australia does "to" or "for" the region to something it does "with" it.
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy is hopeful that 50% of people will download the "COVIDSafe" app.
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Maria Nugent, Australian National University; Dr Gaye Sculthorpe, The British Museum
Unpicking the threads of the stories told about Captain Cook's arrival is vital to find agreement on the provenance of materials that changed hands during colonisation.
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Claire Loughnan, University of Melbourne; Anthea Vogl, University of Technology Sydney; Caroline Fleay, Curtin University; Philomena Murray, University of Melbourne; Sara Dehm, University of Technology Sydney
It is almost impossible for asylum seekers held in detention to practise social distancing. For their protection, and that of the wider community, the government must take action now.
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
Michelle Grattan talks with Assistant Professor Caroline Fisher about the week in politics, including the latest coronavirus developments, Malcolm Turnbull's Memoirs, and the ACCC code of conduct for Facebook and Google.
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Samuel Wilson, Swinburne University of Technology; Jason Pallant, Swinburne University of Technology; Sylvia T. Gray, Swinburne University of Technology; Timothy Colin Bednall, Swinburne University of Technology
A new survey reveals that public trust in the federal government's ability to provide good, effective leadership has skyrocketed since the coronavirus crisis began.
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Cities
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Roger Patulny, University of Wollongong; Jordan McKenzie, University of Wollongong; Marlee Bower, University of Sydney; Rebecca E. Olson, The University of Queensland
Anxiety and loneliness affect many people at the best of times. The pandemic-induced isolation and stress won't be helping, but cities can do many things to improve the 'emotional climate'.
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Ron Wakefield, RMIT University
Now is the time for a two-pronged strategy to ensure everyone has a home: a spot-purchasing program to find homes for people now in emergency accommodation, followed by social housing construction.
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Business + Economy
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Danielle Wood, Grattan Institute; Kate Griffiths, Grattan Institute; Owain Emslie, Grattan Institute
There is a strong economic case for a higher child-care subsidy to help rebuild the Australian economy after the coronavirus crisis.
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Warren Staples, RMIT University; Andrew Linden, RMIT University; Mariano L.M. Heyden, Monash University
If its foreign owners thought it had a future they would have kicked in money.
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Environment + Energy
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Rebecca Hamilton, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History; Dan Penny, University of Sydney; Josephine Gillespie, University of Sydney; Shane Ingrey, UNSW
If we want to conserve ecosystems that escaped European exploitation and mismanagement, we must start listening to environmental histories to compliment scientific research.
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Education
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Paul Haskell-Dowland, Edith Cowan University; Ismini Vasileiou, De Montfort University
Just as office workers need to be aware of cyber risks when setting up a home office, parents need to think about the increased exposure their children will face to cyber threats at home.
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Mandie Shean, Edith Cowan University
People hate boredom. Some would rather get a painful shock than sit in a room with nothing to do for 15 minutes. But boredom spurs us on to create and can help focus our attention.
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Science + Technology
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Paul Haskell-Dowland, Edith Cowan University
The Australian National University is turning to digital proctoring to replace the role of a walking invigilator. But who watches the proctor, what are the risks, and what data will be collected?
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Anna Kosovac, University of Melbourne; Erin O'Donnell, University of Melbourne; Stuart Khan, UNSW
The government plans to monitor sewage for the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. And while this holds promise to tracking future local outbreaks, there are also some sticky ethical questions to consider.
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Arts + Culture
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Vanicka Arora, Western Sydney University
Bhaktapur suffered 300 deaths, 2,000 wounded and over 30,000 houses damaged in the 2015 earthquake. Heritage restoration has become crucial to community recovery.
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Chari Larsson, Griffith University
Though galleries have since closed their doors, this reviewer got to see Mavis Ngallametta's works in all their glory. Their birdseye view of Country provides a perspective we're missing right now.
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— Canberra ACT, Australia
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