Schools Also Embrace 'With Corona'... Full Return to In-Person Classes in the Capital Area from November 22

Full Return to School After College Entrance Exam Following 3-Week Preparation Period
Possible Attendance Restrictions for Overcrowded Schools Depending on Infection Situation
Group Discussions and Small-Scale Experiential Activities Also Allowed
Plans to Resume Festivals, Competitions, and Overnight Experiential Learning from Next Year's First Semester

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] The Ministry of Education will resume full in-person attendance at kindergartens, elementary, middle, and high schools starting after the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), following a three-week grace period. The goal is to fully normalize school activities from the first semester of next year.

On the 29th, the Ministry of Education announced the 'Step-by-Step Recovery Plan for the Education Sector' in line with the national phased daily recovery strategy.

After a three-week preparation period for daily recovery, full in-person attendance will begin nationwide at kindergartens, elementary, middle, and high schools from November 22. Full attendance will also be implemented in the metropolitan area, where attendance rates had been low due to the prolonged Level 4 social distancing. The metropolitan area attendance rate had remained around 69%, showing a gap compared to non-metropolitan areas (94.4%).

Although social distancing levels will be abolished and the school density standard will be changed to 'full attendance possible,' schools may autonomously decide whether to operate full attendance depending on the COVID-19 situation and school readiness by region and circumstances. For example, in metropolitan area oversized and overcrowded elementary schools with more than 1,000 students, it is possible to have only 3/4 of grades 3 to 6 attend after gathering opinions from members.

However, if the infection spread worsens severely and the medical system is at risk of collapse, schools will implement density restrictions and other measures as an 'emergency plan.'

Small-scale face-to-face activities in curricular and extracurricular units will also be gradually expanded. In kindergartens, peer and outdoor play and physical activities will be operated normally. Group and discussion classes and small-scale experiential activities will be allowed in elementary, middle, and high schools. The home study period, extended to about 57 days, can be adjusted by region.

As concerns about infection increase with daily recovery and increased school density, ventilation, proper mask-wearing (KF80 or higher), expansion of quarantine personnel, and mobile polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing will be promoted to minimize infections within schools.

From November 1, restrictions on study room operating hours will be lifted. In private academies, the seating spacing rule will change from leaving one seat empty to no spacing, but operating hour restrictions will be lifted from November 22. Special quarantine inspections for academies will be conducted from November 4 to 17, two weeks before the CSAT.

The government will continue to strengthen quarantine measures in school dormitories, sports facilities, academies, and unauthorized educational facilities vulnerable to group infections. Around the time of full attendance, from November 18 to the end of the year, a 'Student Safety Special Period' will be designated to inspect multi-use facilities frequently visited by students, such as PC rooms and karaoke rooms, and to prevent safety accidents.

Additionally, during the winter vacation period, customized educational recovery programs will be operated to address learning deficits and restore emotional and social skills. After-school programs will also offer various programs such as arts and physical education during the vacation period.

The Ministry of Education plans to apply the principle of full attendance from the first semester of next year to transition to complete daily recovery. School-level activities such as festivals and competitions, overnight experiential learning like school trips, and full operation of after-school programs will be permitted and reviewed.

The Ministry stated, "While maintaining basic quarantine rules, we will shift the quarantine system in line with the daily recovery trend. Detailed measures such as adjusting attendance suspension criteria will be decided later considering the infection situation and the progress of daily recovery."

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Yoo Eun-hye emphasized, "The core of school daily recovery is to protect student safety and normalize educational activities even in the COVID-19 daily life environment. We will proceed step-by-step aiming for full normalization in the first semester of next year. The success of school daily recovery requires not only schools but also the entire local community to strictly adhere to basic quarantine rules."

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