Will three be the new six?

The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Monday that the agency might revise its guidance calling for at least six feet of distancing between students in schools in areas with high coronavirus transmission. But one major stakeholder, the American Federation of Teachers, is staunchly opposed to changing the guidance now and plans to try to persuade the agency not to do so.

Here’s the background: Since some schools began to reopen last fall, guidance that students should be spaced six feet apart to prevent transmission of the virus has prevented many schools from allowing students to return to the classroom full time. In New York City, for example, students in schools where a high proportion of students opted to come back in person attend school for only part of the week, to ensure six feet of distancing.

Recently, with concerns rising about the social costs of students not being in the classroom full time, some experts have been questioning the basis for the six-foot guidance.

Most recently, a study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases found that, in Massachusetts, when students and staff were masked, there wasno significant difference in infection rates in schools that required at least six feet of distance versus those that required only three feet.