All must wear masks in school; classes will be in cohorts

Safe management measures across educational institutions will be tightened, in line with stricter measures islandwide from tomorrow to June 13, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said yesterday.

MOE said in a statement that all students and staff must wear face masks, and not face shields, when in school and on campus, unless they are unable to due to special needs or medical conditions.

Face shields should not be used as a substitute for masks, unless there are medical exceptions for the person, or if a pupil is aged 12 or younger.

Classes will also be in cohorts to reduce intermingling of students, and lectures will be capped at 50 people.

Group sizes across all activities will be reduced from five people to two, with safe management measures in place.

In addition, centre-based classes, such as those held at language centres and elective programme centres, will be conducted online.

All co-curricular activities (CCAs) will be reformatted and conducted online, while external CCAs will remain suspended.

In-person events will also be suspended. All large-scale events will be cancelled or postponed, or held virtually, if possible.

In addition, schools will enforce fixed seating with a spacing of 1m between students for recess, with no intermingling.

School-based activities and after-school care arrangements will continue, subject to the tightened safe management measures.

Both school-based mid-year assessments and the mid-year GCE O-level and A-level mother tongue language examinations will proceed. Exams will be held in classrooms, with safe distancing measures.

As for institutes of higher learning (IHLs), all will continue to keep in-person class and lecture sizes to no more than 50 people.

Other larger classes and lectures are to be conducted online.

Dining in canteens and dining halls at IHLs can continue with the necessary safe management measures, given that students and staff are on campus for a longer period of time, said the ministry.

Exams will be reformatted and conducted in classrooms with a maximum class size of 50 people.

Where possible, IHLs will conduct exams online, while internships and work attachments will continue, with students adhering to the prevailing measures at the organisations they are attached to.

Meanwhile, private education institutions offering pre-tertiary and tertiary courses must follow the tightened national safe management measures, said MOE.

They should also take reference from the plans and safe management measures for schools and IHLs, and are encouraged to adopt tighter measures aligned to their respective institutional settings.

MOE said that while private tuition and enrichment centres may continue operating, they should consider online lessons as the default arrangement during this period of heightened risk.

In the event that in-person classes proceed, centres must comply strictly with the national measures, such as stepping up screening for staff and students so that those who are unwell do not attend lessons, the ministry stressed.

A Covid-19 cluster involving such a centre has surfaced.

The Ministry of Health announced last night that five primary school pupils tested positive for Covid-19 after attending classes run by an infected tuition teacher at Learning Point, an enrichment centre in Park-way Centre.

All instructors, staff and students must wear masks, while students must maintain safe distancing of at least 1m from others and refrain from interacting.

If some interaction is unavoidable, they must remain in pairs, with each pair maintaining a distance of at least 1m, or preferably 2m, from other groups, with no mixing between groups, said MOE.

It added that in-person singing and wind instrument classes will be suspended.

The ministry said it will continue to monitor the situation closely, and work with schools and IHLs to implement additional safe management measures where necessary to ensure the well-being of students and staff.

"We urge all students and staff to consult a doctor immediately if they are feeling unwell, continue practising good personal hygiene and adhere to safe management measures," it said.

"This includes wearing masks, washing hands frequently, wiping down equipment and tables after each use, seeing a doctor if they are sick and returning to school or campus only when fully recovered."