On the occasion of the start of school in the east of the country, Martin Polaschek was a guest of Martin Thür in “ZiB 2″ on Sunday evening. The Minister of Education explained why there are no uniform corona rules in the schools, but rather they differ depending on the federal state: “There is a clear distribution of competences in this state. It is such that the federal government has a variant management plan that has laid down very clear regulations. Where the federal states have the status of employers, they have the opportunity to set their own regulations.”
“Countries are overreacting”
Regarding the criticism that different rules are used from school type to school type – with the same risk of infection – Polaschek says: “I am an educational politician and not a health politician. The Minister of Health has made very clear guidelines in this regard. It was also an express wish of many people that we have rules for the school sector as for the other areas of life. That’s what we did. If the countries now make different decisions, that has to be respected. But I think that these decisions go too far.”
Video: Education Minister Martin Polaschek in the “ZiB 2” interview:
Polaschek supports the fact that a symptom-free twelve-year-old has to go to school despite a Covid-19 infection. “These are health policy decisions that I think are right,” says the Minister of Education. “The young people can decide for themselves. If they don’t have any symptoms, then they go to school, they go to other areas too.” Children should not be underestimated: “Students and teachers have shown in recent years that they are very responsible with these rules.”
Skepticism about CO2 devices
The Minister of Education is critical of the use of CO2 measuring devices in the classrooms. There are studies that consider this to be useful, others would prove the opposite. “We know that regular ventilation makes the most sense. I don’t need a traffic light, I can basically use a stopwatch, an alarm clock, to ventilate at certain intervals,” said Polaschek. There will also be a trial operation in selected schools.
When asked about the acute shortage of teachers in Austria’s schools, the ÖVP politician says: “We have a need, that’s right. And we’re working on combating this shortage of teachers.” A total of 8,600 teaching positions were advertised at the schools this year. “That doesn’t mean that 8,600 positions are missing. Let me make that clear. We have a need for teachers in some areas. That is absolutely correct. We are working at different levels to meet this need.” Students in higher semesters should be used, teachers should work more hours or part-time workers are asked to increase hours. “In any case, parents can expect the high-quality teaching they need for their children,” said Polaschek.
Source: Nachrichten
