Parents and teaching unions have gone head-to-head over the controversial issue of face masks in schools.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon did not bow to the pressure to change the Covid-19 safety rules in schools today.
Instead, she again promised that a special education advisory subgroup will meet and provide an update.
She said that they will share any changes before the upcoming February break, but that schools would have plenty of time to adapt.
Still divisions over face masks in schools: What do you think?
Parent and teacher groups and MSPs greeted Ms Sturgeon’s update on face masks in schools with a mixed response.
Jo Bisset, organiser for UFTScotland, called the ongoing mask mandate “miserable and pointless”.
And one MSP expressed concern that the ongoing mask mandate is going to cause years of damage to children with hearing impairments.
Meanwhile, the EIS teaching union has written to government leaders and advisors urging for masks to remain in place at least until Easter.
Last autumn, 88% of almost 1,500 readers said that it was time to ditch face masks for secondary students.
What do you think should be done about face masks in schools now?
Are kids being left behind?
UFTScotland organiser Jo Bisset said that it isn’t right to leave children out of the move towards normal.
“Once again, we have an announcement where various rules are changed, yet kids get left behind.
“Masking up children in classrooms harms our children, but still this ludicrous mandate remains.
“Parents will again be left disappointed that so much of society has returned to normal while pupils continue to lose out.”
Masks could be having a disproportionate affect on pupils with learning impairments
During Tuesday’s meeting of the Scottish Parliament, North East Conservative MSP Douglas Lumsden quoted a letter from a parent.
The parent said that children with hearing impairments could take years to recover from the disruptions masks have caused.
The parent said: “Every single day this policy’s in place it takes away future hopes, dreams and friendships of hearing-impaired pupils.”
Union continues to urge caution
Earlier this week, EIS General Secretary Larry Flanagan wrote to the government’s Scientific Advisory Sub-Group on Education.
He said that EIS believes face masks should remain in place until the Easter holidays.
Alistair Bell, Highland’s EIS representative, said that EIS is not expecting any changes before the February break.
“Despite the broader societal relaxation of Covid mitigations, the EIS has continued to argue for maximum caution in relation to schools and nurseries, which remain working environments for staff.
“We expect things to remain unaltered until the February break, and there appears to be broad agreement that a phased approach to any changes would be beneficial.”
Both the education subgroup and the Covid Education Recovery Group, another advisory group of which Mr Flanagan is apart, meet this week.
Read more from the Schools & Family team
POLL: Should Scotland vaccinate children under five?
‘A lost year’: North and north east students are desperate to get back to normal
North-east nursery inspection reports: How does the childcare in your area rate?