Term three has kicked off at a remote Northern Territory school, but its teachers have not been able to return to class because of COVID lockdowns thousands of kilometres away.
Over the past week, the Northern Territory has declared coronavirus hotspots in Greater Melbourne and Adelaide, as well as some regional parts of Victoria and New South Wales.
The sudden declarations have had a direct impact on the Wugularr School in Beswick, a remote community of just over 500 people, 430 kilometres south-east of Darwin.
The NT Education Department has confirmed the school's seven teachers are currently stranded in Victoria, although the principal and some teacher's aides are still in Beswick.
"It looked like during the school holidays it was fine, the focus was on Sydney, and then that all changed within a matter of about 48 hours."
The department said educators from neighbouring schools have been brought in to fill the gaps.
While students at the school adjust to their replacement teachers, Mr Ryan said the stranded staff face the prospect of quarantining for two weeks at the Howard Springs facility.
If they stay there, they will have to pay the $2,500 themselves.
Mr Ryan said the pandemic had made school holidays a challenge for teachers in the NT, who must decide whether visiting family and friends interstate is worth the risk.
Staff have repeatedly been told to reconsider plans to travel outside of the Territory during school holidays, amid the threat of coronavirus hotspots being declared.
Last September, the Education Union said more than 50 teachers were forced into quarantine after hotspots were announced in Victoria and NSW.
"And that's become much harder over the last 18 months."
Mr Ryan said the pandemic had exacerbated feelings of isolation for many teachers in the NT.
He said future disruptions could turn teachers away from a profession that was already struggling to attract new recruits.
In February, the union called for teachers to be prioritised in the vaccine rollout.
"It is so important that our kids miss as little time as possible from face-to-face instruction," Mr Ryan said.
"Having a vaccinated education workforce gives us the highest level of confidence about keeping our schools open, even in the face of outbreaks in the future."
Health care workers, quarantine and border entry workers, people aged over 40, Territorians with health conditions and Indigenous Australians are being prioritised for the vaccine in the Northern Territory.
Health Minister Natasha Fyles said teachers living in remote communities could get vaccinated "with the whole community when remote vaccine teams visit".
