By Rosli Abidin Yahya
An unidentified man wearing a mask at the Kiulap
shopping complex to prevent infection of SARS. Photo: Zureena
Abdullah
Concerned about the high percentage of absenteeism in classes
especially at private schools, parents and teachers are hoping
that the Ministry of Education would declare another school
break until the situation return to normal after the recent fear
of possible outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).
Teachers said absenteeism was high on the second day of the
second term and that some classes reported only 5 pupils
attending out of a class of 30 to 40.
Teachers said the absenteeism disrupted education as they
could not proceed to teach with only a few students in one
class.
"We cannot say the pupils must attend classes. If their
children contract SARS, then we will be the ones to blame,"
some teachers said.
Furthermore, the teachers were also feeling edgy as they may
find themselves on the receiving end of SARS.
Some parents especially those with children in kindergarten
and lower primary levels did not send their offsprings to school
as they were unsure of the SARS situation. Schools reopened last
Monday after a nearly two-week first term break.
"Until the Ministry of Education says students are safe
in schools, we will not take any chances.
"We will only send our children if there is already a
vaccine in place to neutralise the deadly virus," they
said.
They said safety precautions at schools throughout the
country would be costly such as stationing health officials at
schools.
They felt the classes needed to be disinfected just in case a
student who came back from holidays might be carrying the virus.
"The death rate of SARS at infected countries is
alarming. With our entry points open freely to all people, there
will always be a chance that the virus could find its way
here," they said.
The parents also said schools need to provide the students
with N-95 protective masks to protect them against potential
SARS.
Meanwhile, doctors, nurses and helpers at hospitals and
clinics were seen wearing protective masks which they said were
preventive measures as their jobs made them easy targets for
infections by potential SARS carriers.
"Patients come here due to a variety of illnesses and
who knows any one of them could be carrying the SARS
virus," they said,
A few people were also seen wearing protective masks when
outdoors.
"There were many funny faces when we wore protective
masks but we do not want to take any risks. Life is too precious
for me," said a couple adding that they bought the masks at
a pharmacy.
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