If a Confirmed Case Appears, All Students Go Home... No Exceptions for 3rd Year High School Students

Switch to Remote Classes
Daily Morning Self-Diagnosis Required
If Family Member Has Traveled Abroad or Is in Quarantine
Attendance Recognized Without Attending School

On the 20th, when in-person classes postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic resumed, third-year students at a high school in Seoul received quarantine supplies from their homeroom teacher. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] If even one student tests positive for the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) after attending school, the entire school will suspend in-person attendance and revert to remote learning. The education authorities have set guidelines to suspend attendance for the whole school without differentiating by class or grade because it is difficult to track individual students' movements. A Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education official explained, "Even for third-year high school students, if a confirmed case appears in another grade, attendance will be suspended."

Every morning before attending school, students must conduct a self-diagnosis at home to check their health status. If they are judged to have health abnormalities or a high risk of infection, attendance is prohibited. Responses can also be submitted via a smartphone application, and the results are immediately sent to the homeroom teacher. The self-diagnosis items include suspected COVID-19 symptoms such as fever, sore throat, difficulty breathing, and nausea. Additionally, students who themselves or whose cohabiting family members have traveled abroad within the last 14 days, or who live with individuals under self-quarantine, are not allowed to attend school. Attendance will still be recognized.

Before attending school, temperature checks are conducted at the school gate and on the first floor of the school building using thermal cameras and thermometers. All students and staff must line up and have their temperature checked to ensure it is below 37.5 degrees Celsius. If symptoms are present, the individual will be managed separately in a protective observation room. In such cases, parents will be contacted to have the student undergo testing, or the student will be immediately transported to a screening clinic by a 119 ambulance.

With third and fourth wave infections continuing from an academy instructor in Incheon and recent confirmed cases occurring at a university hospital and vocational school in Seoul, parents and on-site teachers remain highly anxious. A high school teacher said, "The most worrisome time is when students move for elective classes," adding, "We enforce single-file, one-way movement in the hallways, but I am anxious about whether we can monitor everything thoroughly."

Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, said, "I understand that teachers feel a heavy sense of responsibility as they have to manage both classes and quarantine measures," and added, "We will dispatch five support staff for elementary schools and three for middle and high schools, and in cases where there are overcrowded classes with more than 30 students, we will send an additional three staff members to support quarantine efforts."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.