School Archives — Dear Pandemic

April 10, 2021

Dear Pandemic COVID Q&A

In this live Q&A, we’re teaming up with our science gal-pals at the Unbiased Science Podcast, Drs. Andrea Love and Jessica Steier! We’ll be answering reader questions about antibody testing after vaccination, viral variants & kids, #thrifting, and whether your COVID-19 vaccine can make you test positive for COVID. https://www.facebook.com/unbiasedscipod/ ➡️ Welcome, Intros, and Comments …

March 23, 2021

What is the right distance for spacing students in classrooms?

Infection and Spread School

Lindsey Leininger, PhD MA

A: There is no magic distance, at 3 feet or 6 feet, that the coronavirus, or any virus for that matter, respects. A recent study has generated lots of buzz with its conclusion that 3 feet of physical distance is just as good as 6 feet of space between students (link below). But the study’s …

March 23, 2021

What’s the latest guidance on in-person school in the US?

School

Rachael Piltch-Loeb, PhD MSPH

A: Schools re-opening for in-person learning remains a big priority. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has provided guidance for K-12 schools on reopening for in-person learning. The guidance focuses on what can be done within a school to make in-person learning as safe as possible as well as what needs to be …

February 5, 2021

What effects does too much screen time have on our eyes?

Families/Kids School

Lauren Hale, PhD MA

Q.) My family is staring at screens all day now. What are the effects on our eyes? What can we do about it? A.) Eye doctors are indicating that increased time on screens is related to vision changes, dry eyes, blurry vision, eye fatigue, and headaches. Here are some ocular health tips for you and …

January 20, 2021

Does in-person schooling contribute to COVID-19 spread?

Infection and Spread School

Jennifer Beam Dowd, PhD

A: It’s complicated. TL;DR: Two new well-designed studies find evidence that in-person schooling *does not* contribute to COVID spread when baseline community spread is LOW, but that in-person schooling *does* contribute to worsening COVID metrics when baseline COVID transmission is high. Thus far the research on schools and COVID-19 has been quite muddy, but two …

December 12, 2020

Dear Pandemic COVID Q&A

School Videos

Malia Jones, PhD MPH

For this week’s Live Q&A, we are so excited welcome a special guest whose expertise is COVID and K12 schools for our live Q&A! Dr. Chloe Gibbs is an education policy scholar at the University of Notre Dame and writes a weekly review of the emerging science on COVID and K12 schools. This event is …

November 23, 2020

Has my COVID bubble gotten out of control? How can I tell?

Families/Kids Infection and Spread School Socializing Staying Safe Testing and Contact Tracing

Malia Jones, PhD MPH

A: Your “bubble” might be far bigger than you think. To figure out exactly how big and who you might be sharing germs with, think like a contact tracer and sketch out your contact network. 🖧 If you need to pull out a piece of paper to figure this out, that’s a whole lot of …

October 17, 2020

Dear Pandemic COVID Q&A

Infection and Spread School Staying Safe Uncertainty and Misinformation Videos

Malia Jones, PhD MPH

Your Questions: Answered Dr. Lindsey Leininger and Dr. Malia Jones answer your COVID questions!This week we tackle:☑️ Reinfection (2:25 – 7:45)☑️ Psychology of risky behavior (7:55 – 13:06)☑️ Election-day poll volunteering (13:19 – 17:45)☑️ Are schools superspreaders? (18:00 – 25:55)☑️ It’s OK to donate blood! (26:03 – 27:30)Big thanks to those who submitted questions! (Note: …

September 27, 2020

Are you concerned about your kids spending too much time on screens?

Families/Kids Mental Health School

Lauren Hale, PhD MA

Dear Pandemic is thrilled to introduce this week’s Nerdy Guest, Dr. Pamela Hurst-Della Pietra. She is President and founder of Children and Screens: Institute of Digital Media and Child Development. Using her medical degree, non-profit experience, philanthropic resources, and a long-standing interest in media and children, Dr. Hurst-Della Pietra has become one of the field’s …

September 23, 2020

Can children spread COVID-19 in child care facilities (children 5 and under)?

Families/Kids Infection and Spread Reopening School Staying Safe Testing and Contact Tracing

Aparna Kumar, PhD CRNP MPH

From our follower Question Box!! A: Yes, while we know that children are less likely to experience severe illness due to COVID-19, increasing evidence tells us that children can spread (transmit) the virus. But, it is not clear if they are more likely to do so than adults or if likelihood of transmission varies by …

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