But it has still stopped making masks mandatory nationally, instead leaving it to each school to decide for itself.
That stronger formulation is because the Omicron wave appears to have peaked at just over 10,000 daily cases. Covid has killed or accelerated the deaths of at least 1,252 people in New Zealand, most this year.
The daily number of cases has now fallen below 10,000, but it’s unclear how much school holidays have slowed transmission — and whether the number will rise again when students return to class.
Associate Minister of Education Jan Tinetti has now written to school boards outlining the government’s “strong recommendation to review and enforce a mask-wearing policy as much as possible,” according to a bulletin issued last night to sent to schools.
It said both the ministries of education and health recommended that students in grades 4 and above wear masks for the next four weeks while indoors, where practical and where it will not have a “significant impact on teaching and learning”.
That follows Dr Ashley Bloomfield’s “strong recommendation” earlier this week that schools return masks from Monday.
Schools that had taken simple measures, such as wearing masks, were the ones that could have minimized the infection, he said.
But when asked whether the government should require schools to enforce masks, he said the health ministry had been asked for that advice and had opted for the message of “very strong recommendation”.
Under the red light setting, masks were mandatory in schools from the age of 4, but since the transition to orange in April, each school board has established its own mask policy.
That’s despite strong criticism from public health experts.
The move meant some schools enforced masks, while others made them optional or “encouraged” — despite a spate of winter sickness that caused staff shortages and student absences, forcing many schools to revert to hybrid or online learning.
Last night’s bulletin highlighted those struggles, saying illness “would likely put more pressure on your school, kura and community”.
The public health advisory clearly showed that masks worked to prevent infection, it said.
It acknowledged that some schools may find mask enforcement challenging, but asked schools to “take action as soon as possible to strengthen your mask-wearing policies.”
A letter template was provided for parents and whanau, along with guidance on the benefits of wearing a mask.
There may be situations where masks were not practical – such as indoor sports, singing or drama or playing musical instruments – in which case ventilation and physical distance should be prioritized.
“This approach seeks to balance the benefits of wearing masks with the primary goal of school education across all areas of learning and ensuring that students with specific learning needs who may be impeded by wearing masks are considered,” said the.
The ministry would later advise whether the masking policy should be extended beyond the first four weeks of the term.