❓ Dr. Walker questions the impact of COVID-19 close contact rules on K-3 teachers and the availability of relief staff. The Minister clarifies the close contact rules and outlines support for sourcing relief staff.
AnsweredQoN 203Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
CORONAVIRUS — TEACHERS — K–3
203. Hon Dr BRIAN WALKER to the Minister for Education and
Training:
I
refer the minister to the ongoing spike in COVID-19 cases affecting local
communities and its impact on our schools in particular.
(1) Am I correct in my understanding that, because
kindergarten-aged students are, understandably, not required to wear
masks, their teachers and teaching assistants are still being classed as close
contacts when a child in their care tests positive?
(2) If yes to
(1), has this led to a disproportionate number of staff members in the K–3
range being forced to absent themselves from schools in recent weeks?
(3) What
additional resources and/or support is the department offering schools to help
them swiftly and effectively source qualified relief staff during the COVID-19
pandemic, and are any of these resources specific to staff working in K–3
classrooms?
203. Hon Dr BRIAN WALKER to the Minister for Education and
Training:
I
refer the minister to the ongoing spike in COVID-19 cases affecting local
communities and its impact on our schools in particular.
(1) Am I correct in my understanding that, because
kindergarten-aged students are, understandably, not required to wear
masks, their teachers and teaching assistants are still being classed as close
contacts when a child in their care tests positive?
(2) If yes to
(1), has this led to a disproportionate number of staff members in the K–3
range being forced to absent themselves from schools in recent weeks?
(3) What
additional resources and/or support is the department offering schools to help
them swiftly and effectively source qualified relief staff during the COVID-19
pandemic, and are any of these resources specific to staff working in K–3
classrooms?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1) No. Staff in
classes across kindergarten to year 2 are not automatically close contacts if a
student in their class is a confirmed case.
Although staff can remove their masks when necessary to teach, they are
required to wear masks at all other times, which often negates them
being deemed close contacts.
(2) Not applicable.
(3) A central team assists schools in sourcing relief
staff when the school is unable to source someone locally. This team can
draw upon central staffing pools, teachers and support staff working centrally
in the Department of Education and a flying squad of teachers for regional and
remote schools, as well as providing support in the use of the casual staff
seeker online tool to source relief. These initiatives support all school year
levels.
some notice of the question.
(1) No. Staff in
classes across kindergarten to year 2 are not automatically close contacts if a
student in their class is a confirmed case.
Although staff can remove their masks when necessary to teach, they are
required to wear masks at all other times, which often negates them
being deemed close contacts.
(2) Not applicable.
(3) A central team assists schools in sourcing relief
staff when the school is unable to source someone locally. This team can
draw upon central staffing pools, teachers and support staff working centrally
in the Department of Education and a flying squad of teachers for regional and
remote schools, as well as providing support in the use of the casual staff
seeker online tool to source relief. These initiatives support all school year
levels.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.