Everything We Know Now About Schools, Kids, and Covid-19

Photograph: Robyn Beck / Getty Images. Article by Megan Molteni. Wired – January 15, 2021.

Researchers are finally getting good data on how severely SARS-CoV-2 affects children and how they transmit it. What does it mean for reopening classrooms?

In the seemingly endless, heartbreaking history of the coronavirus pandemic, this past week has been the bleakest yet. Since last Thursday, Covid-19 has killed over 23,000 people in the US—the deadliest week in American history. Logistical snags are dragging down the vaccine rollout, and a dangerous new virus strain has begun to spread in at least a dozen states.

At a time when kids would normally be starting their spring semester, this post-holiday surge has many state and local officials again grappling with the polarizing issue of in-person education. In hard-hit Southern California, health authorities are calling for a total school shutdown across Los Angeles County. Meanwhile, in New York City, public officials are pushing to keep classrooms open, arguing that as cases in their city spike, schools might actually be the safest place for kids to be. […]

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