First of all, 2020 is a much different year than 2019. As you all know, our world is being affected by COVID-19. We would be able to go out with friends, go to wherever we wanted to go - but instead we had to do online classes for 2 terms, now wear masks at all times, (except for lunch and P.E.), wash our hands and spray our desks before every class, and keep socially distanced. Miya Banks, a grade 7 student from Nakatsu OYIS stated, “They are very strict about washing hands and sanitising, you can't be close to your friends, and you have to wear a boring, hot mask.” 

Since this is such a big problem going on in the world, it's important to stay informed about what is happening right now with COVID-19 in Japan, Kansai, Osaka, and OYIS. This information changes every day, so you should check your local news sources for regular updates after this.

In August, the number of people with COVID in Osaka were in the thousands. “It actually scared me a lot because I think people were just tired of being stuck at home, and so I noticed a lot more of my friends were going out, and I actually tried to stay in more. I thought people were exposing themselves a lot more than they should,” states Ms. Laura, a Grade 7 homeroom teacher and English teacher at Nakatsu OYIS.

This doesn't only affect the students, but the parents as well. Parents this year met their children's teachers through video calls, parents could not come to the PYP exhibition ceremony in October, and no parents have been able to come onto campus at OYIS. Many parents (of younger children) sadly could not walk their kid(s) into school on the first day.

But now, as an average, 415 people get COVID-19 each day in Osaka, and the Japanese government has stated that new precautions may need to take place, and with the colder temperatures the numbers of cases may increase. “I guess it concerns me a little bit but I feel like as long as we stay safe and get our flu shots then it will be ok." Chloe, a grade 7 student stated.

The Japanese government has taken many tests, and 4% of the results are currently positive, affecting how we interact with people around us.

In Japan, 109,896 people have recovered, and this number continues to increase. “I feel relieved, because I know that people are taking this very seriously, and it gives us an opportunity to get out a little bit more. I am also really happy about how people are recovering ... because I think that medicine and the doctors are understanding COVID more than they did in the past,” Miss Laura stated. 

Since this pandemic started, 27,052 people have become ill in Kansai.

Due to all of this, the school music performance has also been restricted, as well as the athletic teams which have also been affected. The soccer and basketball teams may not do as many games this year because other schools have shut down their basketball and soccer programs because of COVID.  

As of today in Osaka, 2,778 people have COVID-19, and the chances of getting it in Kansai are about 0.02%. Even though we have to follow these procedures, we are lucky to be at school.

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NEWEST UPDATE:

Osaka is now under the third wave of COVID-19. The rates have changed drastically this month, but the city has not taken any new measures of protection. Even though things have not changed, make sure to stay safe; the rising rate could potentially put us all back in online school. Luckily, we are at school now, and the OYISTER promises to bring COVID-19 updates.

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This Map shows Kansai specifically, instead of all of Japan. This graph is very helpful to understand the speed in which the numbers go up, as well as including accuracy and legibility.

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This Map shows the rates of all of Japan. This does not just show the active cases, but the deaths, recovered, and confirmed cases, providing more detail and information.

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These are all the different pictures of COVID-19 awareness materials around the school. These posters explain all about COVID, and they provide much information as well as protection.

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CITE USED:

Reustle, Shane. “Japan COVID-19 Coronavirus Tracker.” Covid 19 Japan, 2020, https://covid19japan.com. Accessed 15 November 2020.