Students of King Lam Catholic Primary School in Tseung Kwan O return to their school on Feb 22, 2021 as Hong Kong schools reopen partially after two months. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)
HONG KONG – More Hong Kong students will be allowed to return to schools for in-person classes after the Easter holiday, the government announced on Friday, a day after the financial hub recorded zero untraceable COVID-19 infections for the first time in four months.
The government said students of different grades should take turns to return to the campuses so that they all have the chance to interact with peers
Up to two-thirds of schools' students will be allowed to attend face-to-face classes on a half-day basis, a spokesperson for the Education Bureau said in a release. The government will send detailed instructions to the city’s kindergartens and primary and secondary schools next week, the spokesperson said.
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Currently, up to one-third of the students of a school are allowed to attend classes on-campus at the same time while the remaining students attend online classes at home.
The spokesperson said students of different grades should take turns to return to the campuses so that they all have the chance to interact with peers.
Schools are encouraged to arrange all their staffers to take regular coronavirus tests – a prerequisite for the resumption of full-day schooling at a school, the spokesperson added.
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David Hui Shu-cheong, a respiratory disease expert at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, believes it is reasonable to relax curbs such as the restriction on face-to-face class after the Easter holiday if no untraceable infections are recorded for the next few days.
Speaking on a radio program, Hui said the city’s fourth wave of infections is approaching an end, but people should remain vigilant because post-holiday outbreaks are frequent.