Tomorrow, 2.37 Million Elementary, Middle, and High School Students Return for Second Phase of In-Person Classes... Schools on High Alert

High School Sophomores, Middle School Juniors, Elementary Grades 1-2, Kindergarten Students
Alternating Weeks and Days for Attendance to Reduce Crowds
Infection Prevention Measures by School

After Confirmed Case in Gangseo-gu Kindergarten Student,
Parents Say "With High Infection Risk, Is Once-a-Week Attendance Meaningful?"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] With the return to school for 2nd-year high school students, 3rd-year middle school students, 1st and 2nd-grade elementary students, and kindergarteners just one day away, schools at all levels are in the final stages of preparation. The total number of students involved reaches 2.37 million. Considering that 450,000 3rd-year high school students returned to school a week earlier, the tension at school sites is inevitably much higher. Instead, each school plans to disperse the number of students through alternate-day attendance and other measures.

On the 26th, most schools conducted self-health checks before attending school and informed parents about the schedule and necessary items (personal water bottles, handkerchiefs, etc.) related to upcoming in-person classes. Each city education office recommended classes once a week or every other week/day for grades other than 3rd-year high school students, and individual schools devised attendance methods suitable for their circumstances and those of each class.

An elementary school in Seocho-gu, Seoul, will not have all students attend school tomorrow. This school, which implements an odd-even system, decided to conduct all classes online on Wednesday. On Monday and Tuesday, 1st, 3rd, and 5th graders attend school, while on Thursday and Friday, 2nd, 4th, and 6th graders attend. To alleviate overcrowded classes, students are further divided by odd and even numbers, attending school once a week. An elementary school in Gangbuk-gu, where class sizes are small and emergency care participation is high, plans to divide each class into Monday-Thursday and Tuesday-Friday groups, having students attend school twice a week.

Middle schools are alternating one week of in-person attendance with two weeks of remote learning by grade level, and even when attending school, classrooms have been reassigned by dispersing 2 to 3 classes per floor to maintain social distancing. Some schools are holding midterm exams, while others are not. A private high school in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, decided to have 2nd and 1st-year high school students attend school on alternate weeks. A representative of the high school said, "Students are gradually adapting to remote classes, and participation rates are increasing," but added, "We are concerned that if a confirmed case appears, students may not be able to take midterm exams or other tests."

However, anxiety among parents remains unresolved after it was reported that a confirmed case among kindergarteners in Gangseo-gu was infected by an academy instructor. The kindergarten and elementary schools in Gangseo-gu where the confirmed case appeared will continue remote classes and plan to delay the return to school by one week starting from the 1st of next month. A parent of a 1st-grade elementary student said, "Given the high risk of infection, I wonder what the point is of attending school once a week," but added, "Still, if I don't send my child, I worry about losing communication with the school and friends, so I am very conflicted."

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