Gwangju Metropolitan Office of Education to Resume Two-Thirds Attendance for Kindergarten, Elementary, Middle, and High Schools Starting from the 12th

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] The Gwangju Metropolitan Office of Education announced that, following the government's relaxation of social distancing to Level 1, it will do its best to ensure that as many children as possible can attend school and receive classes.

Through consultations with the educational community, they plan to secure the maximum possible number of student attendance days.

Starting from the 12th, the Gwangju Office of Education stated on the 11th that two-thirds of students in all local kindergartens, elementary, middle, and high schools will attend in-person classes, and they plan to further increase attendance through flexible academic operations. Special schools will conduct full attendance.

Additionally, the density criteria will be relaxed from 'number of students attending on the day' to 'number of students attending at the same time,' aiming to maximize the number of students attending in-person classes.

Kindergartens will have no more than 15 students per class, elementary and high schools will have up to 900 students, middle schools up to 800 students, and special schools are excluded from the school density application.

Accordingly, among the 314 schools in Gwangju, 277 schools, accounting for 88%, will have all students attend in-person classes after consultations with the educational community and a preparation period from the 12th to the 16th.

Schools with more than 800 students (middle schools) and 900 students (elementary and high schools) will also expand in-person classes in principle, applying suitable attendance methods according to school conditions.

Elementary, middle, and high schools will increase the number of students attending in-person classes by applying methods such as 'staggered attendance,' 'morning and afternoon attendance,' 'odd-even grade system,' and 'alternate day attendance,' within two-thirds of the number of students attending at the same time.

Elementary schools will prioritize attendance for grades 1 and 2 to ensure responsible Korean language education and prevent basic academic skill deficits, and care services at kindergartens and elementary schools will operate normally.

Superintendent Jang Huiguk said, “To protect our children's safety from COVID-19 and to resolve academic disparities and provide stable care, the newly introduced academic operation plan starting from the 12th will be quickly established on site. The city education office will actively engage in field-oriented administration,” adding, “In particular, the superintendent and the education office will take responsibility for proactive administration during the COVID-19 situation to create safe schools.”

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