Denmark's Direction with Reopening Schools

 'No Masks, No Distancing: Schools in Denmark Defy COVID-19 with Success so Far' is an article from the CBC News page, by Renée Filippone. Here I will look at through the 5 Steps Critical Process. 

Description: Denmark decided the best way to handle the schooling situation created by COVID-19 is to try and return to normalcy as soon as possible. This means that by April schools began to reopen with the priority being getting children back to school before opening up bars and restaurants. The government also gave each school the space to come up with their own safety plan. For the Ålholm public school, they chose to do away with masks and social distancing while putting precautions in other areas, hiring more teachers to have smaller class groups, structuring in different break times and assigning groups with specific toilets to use. The article provides accounts from students going through the reopening process but does not have any accounts from the parents. The article also provides comparisons between Denmark and other countries such as Israel and the States and how they went about reopening schools. 

Analysis: When looking at the title the writer chose the powerful word "defy" to describe how Denmark has chosen to carry on as normal by allowing students to return to school. One particular pattern seen in the article is the use of comparison between Denmark and other countries. Not just comparisons between Denmark and Israel and the States and how they handled reopening schools, but also comparisons with other countries in Europe. The article mentions how Denmark was not as badly affected by the virus when they decided to close down compared to other European countries such as Spain and Italy. Within the same paragraph, the article mentions how Denmark chose to prioritize opening schools over bars and restaurants, placing it within the comparison between Denmark and Italy and Spain. 

Interpretation: The use of the word 'defy' in the title of the article as well as the use of comparisons places Denmark one side and COVID-19 and the problems caused by it on the other. In doing this the article portrays Denmark as the country to aspire to. The comparisons made with Italy and Spain and Denmark depict the may not to go, not closing early enough and then choosing to open bars and restaurants first and the way to go with how things were done in Denmark. The comparisons with Israel and the States accomplish the same thing. 

Evaluation: The article uses Denmark as a symbol of hope, showing that normalcy can be achieved despite the pandemic. It does a good job of this, providing examples of what worked in Denmark and why. However, because of this, the article shows a bias towards Denmark and this may be why it lacks data, which may have gone against the image of hope it tries to paint. 

Engagement: Stories such as these, of success stories from different countries during the pandemic, are necessary for showing that there may be a right way to go about things, as well as providing hope to others. However, providing hope should not overshadow showing the complete picture of a situation. To properly show how schooling has been dealt with in Denmark, data and objective evidence would help to give a less biased view. It should have also provided accounts from more than the one school. As well as providing accounts from the parents, which should have been a larger focus over that of the students, since in the end, it is the parents who make the decision to send their kids back to school.

-Regina Manyara