Changing School Density to Expand Second Semester Attendance... Ministry of Education "Collecting Opinions"

Ministry of Education "Will Collect Opinions from Teacher Organizations and Metropolitan/Provincial Superintendents and Announce in the 2nd Week of August"
Deputy Prime Minister Yoo and Infectious Disease Experts Emphasize 'Expanding School Attendance'
"The Basic Principle Is to Open Schools First and Close Them Last"

As social distancing level 4 is applied, schools in Seoul have switched to remote classes. On the morning of the 14th, a teacher is conducting an online class in a 5th-grade classroom at Muhak Elementary School in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. 2021.07.14.

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The Ministry of Education announced that it is also considering the possibility of adjusting school density according to social distancing levels in relation to the expansion of in-person attendance in the second semester.

On the 2nd, a Ministry of Education official said at a regular briefing, in response to a question about whether the school density standards might change if the Level 4 social distancing criteria are maintained, "We are consulting with the quarantine authorities on this matter," adding, "We have gathered opinions from infectious disease experts, held meetings with teacher organizations and metropolitan and provincial superintendents of education, and will compile the results to provide guidance in the second week of August."

Regarding the plan to adjust school density standards to allow full in-person attendance even at Level 3, the official explained, "There may be various opinions, but since this is a process of collecting opinions, the details will be included when the announcement is made."

Currently, under the social distancing criteria, full in-person attendance is allowed up to Level 2 (nationwide confirmed cases exceeding 500). At Level 3, elementary school grades 3 to 6 can attend up to 3/4 capacity, and middle and high schools up to 2/3 capacity. Level 4 requires a full transition to remote classes. The Ministry of Education is considering revising the school density standards to expand in-person attendance in the second semester if the social distancing level remains at Level 3 or higher.

It is known that at a meeting last week between Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Yoo Eun-hye and infectious disease experts, various measures focusing on expanding in-person attendance in the second semester were discussed.

A Ministry of Education official explained, "The basic principle is that schools should be the first to open and the last to close in society, and there were remarks emphasizing that schools should be opened as much as possible under any circumstances."

Along with expanding in-person attendance, there is also a possibility of expanding the target group for student vaccinations. To promote the expansion of in-person attendance, the vaccination target age group needs to be expanded, and the Ministry of Education expects discussions to begin from the end of August.

The Ministry of Education official said, "The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) has commissioned experts for a study, and although no final conclusion has been reached, it seems there is currently no capacity due to the vaccination implementation plan for August and September," but added, "We expect the KDCA to have more concrete discussions by the end of August."

Last month, the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety expanded the approved age for the Pfizer vaccine to 12 years and older, and the KDCA is also reviewing the expansion of vaccinations for adolescents aged 12 to 15. Deputy Prime Minister Yoo Eun-hye has also stated that she will coordinate to decide on vaccination policies before the start of the second semester.

Meanwhile, according to the Ministry of Education, as of July 30, 97.2% (19,935 schools) of the 20,512 schools nationwide have started their summer vacation, and 0.4% (76 schools) have switched to remote classes. Among the total 5.93 million students, 0.9%, or 50,000 students, attended in-person classes. From July 29 to August 1, there were a total of 56 confirmed COVID-19 cases among students and 5 among staff.

The start of the second semester varies by school level but generally begins in mid-August. According to the Ministry of Education, 70% of middle schools and 66% of high schools start the semester in the third week of August (August 16?20), while 56% of elementary schools start in the fourth week of August (August 23?27).

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