Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education to Resume In-Person Classes Next Week at Some Elementary Schools in Gangseo-gu... "Only One Final Exam in Middle School"

Announcement of Follow-up Measures for In-person Class Operation

Emergency Care Suspended at Kindergartens and Elementary Schools in Gangseo-gu with Confirmed Cases
"Transition to In-person Classes to Be Discussed with School Principals, Parents, and Education Office"

One Written Exam per Semester for Middle Schools
Elementary Emergency Care Operated Until 7 PM

Low Participation in Pre-attendance Self-health Check for Lower Grades
"Considering Easy Methods Like QR Codes"

Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, is announcing the plan for operating in-person classes on the 18th at the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education in Jongno-gu, Seoul. This plan, which includes the Ministry of Education's phased and sequential in-person class announcement according to social distancing in daily life and the detailed implementation measures of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, stipulates that for 3rd-year high school students, attending school daily is the principle, while 1st and 2nd-year students will operate on a biweekly basis by grade and class, combining remote and in-person classes. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced follow-up measures on the 27th ahead of the second phase of in-person classes, aiming to minimize care gaps and create an environment where teachers can focus on student lessons and daily quarantine guidance by reducing their workload as remote and in-person classes run concurrently.

On the 26th, Seoul Superintendent of Education Cho Hee-yeon stated, "If a confirmed case occurs within a school, kindergarten, or nearby area, all contacts will be quarantined and tested, and the facility will be closed and disinfected for 48 hours. Afterward, the school principal will quickly decide on the transition period to remote classes by gathering parents' opinions and consulting with the education office."

Accordingly, after a kindergarten student related to an academy instructor in Gangseo-gu tested positive, 12 nearby kindergartens and 6 elementary schools immediately suspended emergency care for two days. Among them, 8 kindergartens will proceed with in-person classes as scheduled on the 27th, while the remaining kindergartens and schools are expected to start in-person classes from the 1st or 3rd of next month. One kindergarten is scheduled to resume classes on the 8th of next month.

The education office recommended that middle schools conduct only one written exam for the final exam. Superintendent Cho explained, "This is a measure to reduce the evaluation burden on schools and students," adding, "All middle and high schools in Seoul can autonomously determine the areas, ratios, and methods for first-semester performance assessments."

On the 25th, a citizen visiting the screening clinic at Gangseo-gu Public Health Center in Seoul is being tested amid growing concerns about virus transmission in the area after an art academy instructor in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, was confirmed positive for COVID-19. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

Operating Support Systems to Alleviate Learning Loss Concerns
Self-Health Check Participation Before Attendance for Grades 1 and 2 at 60-70%
Guidance on Minimizing Unnecessary Official Documents and Projects

Elementary after-school care classrooms will continue to operate even after in-person classes resume. For students who do not attend school but require care, schools will allow them to come, including support for remote classes. Operating hours remain the same, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

To alleviate concerns about learning loss such as basic academic deficiencies due to prolonged remote classes, the Seoul Basic Academic Support System, school-developed tools, teacher observations, and counseling are used to diagnose individual students' learning gaps. Based on this, consultations are conducted between homeroom teachers and basic academic support instructors.

To reduce teachers' workload, the education office plans to cut down on official documents sent to schools and provide guidance on projects that should be stopped, postponed, or minimized at schools. Budgets allocated for COVID-19 response will not be subject to usage pressure, inspections, or settlement requests.

The self-diagnosis system conducted daily at home before attending school, starting one week prior to in-person classes, shows lower participation rates among lower grades. The education office is considering easier access methods such as QR codes. According to the office, the self-diagnosis rate was 91.3% for 12th graders, in the 80% range for 11th graders, 77% range for 9th graders, and remained at 60-70% for 1st and 2nd graders.

Superintendent Cho said, "We will prepare a supplementary budget to support quarantine personnel and proactively invest in remote class infrastructure," adding, "For our friends, our schools, and our community, we ask for your cooperation in practicing social distancing in daily life by enduring some inconvenience, wearing masks, and avoiding crowded places."

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