Several dozen parents and children who are dissatisfied with the organization of the education process in a mixt format protested in front of the Government Building on September 1. The protesters called on the authorities to guarantee the children’s right to education, to ensure the return to classrooms and to exclude online learning, IPN reports.

Ala Revenco, executive director of the public association “Solidary Parents”, said the protest is social in character and does not have a political undertone.

Explaining their demands, the protesters said many of the parents could not go to work when the lessons were held online, while the kindergartens were temporarily closed. A poll conducted at the end of May revealed that many children started to have vision problems after spending a lot of time in front of computers when studying online. The motivation to study of some of the children decreased, while other children began to be afraid of the education process, stated Ala Revenco.

She added that while at home alone during online classes, the children are exposed to bigger risks than COVID-19, both household accidents and dangers generated by the online environment. The quality of studies during online learning leaves to be desired. In the case of first-fourth graders, efficiency is close to zero.

The protesting parents said a part of lessons at some of the schools continue to be taught online and this is not right. The arguments related to the prevention of infection with COVID-19 are not plausible as long as the sanitary measures are not respected in other sectors. The public transport is crowded and not all the computers wear masks. Fairs, parades and other large-scale events were staged during the pandemic.

The protesters noted that each second mother with a child at the primary school became unemployed. The situation of one-parent and other families with low income is even more serious as these cannot afford gadgets for online classes.

A parent, who is a teacher, said that to ensure social distance of one meter between students in classrooms, as the National Extraordinary Public Health Commission required, the state should invest in schools and should not introduce online learning as the children remain unsupervised this way.