Danang City reopens almost in-person classes

Danang City will reopen almost all of its schools this month after the six-month closure triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the municipal People's Committee.

The Danang authorities have just announced that sixth graders and university students will go back to classrooms from today [February 14] while primary pupils will return one week later on February 21.

Danang City allowed 7th graders in areas with low and medium Covid-19 risks to get back to school starting February 7. Photo: Quang Hai

The Danang Department of Education and Training has issued regulations and plans to ensure a safe resumption of in-person schooling for their teachers and students, as directed by municipal chairman Le Trung Chinh.

According to the new guidance, primary schools will return from February 21 but not offer day-boarding for their pupils, and they will only go to schools for half-day. No return date has been set for preschoolers.

Face-to-face teaching on campus will resume from February 14 at foreign language and informatics centers, as well as centers for life skills and extracurricular activities.

In particular, co-operation from parents and students to ensure the Covid-19 prevention protocols released by the Ministry of Health is a must-do.

Danang allowed 7th graders in areas with low and medium Covid-19 risks to get back to school starting February 7. Students from 8th to 12th grades had already returned to schools in late 2021. Any class where a Covid-19 infection is detected has so far switched to online teaching and learning.

Widely informed of the face-to-face learning resumption, many parents across Danang City have expressed their great excitement and expected that schools will carefully prepare plans to ensure ultimate safety for their children.

Nguyen Trong An, a resident in Khue My Ward, Ngu Hanh Son District, whose child is a 6th grader at the Le Loi Junior High School, said children should get back to school as soon as possible because they need to learn other skills rather than just academic knowledge.

“It’s time to reopen schools, children can't stay at home forever, students must interact directly with their teachers and classmates,” An told The Hanoi Times.

Schools in Danang City are ready to welcome students back. Photo: Quang Hai

“Let’s children come back to school so that they can develop knowledge, social communication and other necessary skills for life,” said Nguyen Thi My, a parent in Thach Thang Ward, Hai Chau District.

My added that the risk remains the same whether the kids go to school or stay at home because almost all socio-economic activities have resumed and infections have been spreading in the community.

“According to experts of psychology, children’s movement and communication can be limited during their long stay at home. Also, staying at home and being exposed to computers and smartphones for too long would make them gradually lose their emotions,” My stressed.

Till date, many schools in Danang City have completed the rehearsal to be ready to welcome their students back.

As revealed by Vo Thanh Phuoc, principal of Nguyen Hue Junior High School, his school has developed a plan to deal with the unexpected occurrence of Covid-19 cases.

If a class reports a coronavirus case, the school’s board will actively make a shift from face-to-face to online learning and the common curriculum framework must be ensured.

“In order to ensure the safety of students when returning to school, I suggest the functional departments speed up the administration of Covid-19 vaccines for schoolchildren aged 5-11 and support funding for rapid coronavirus tests for teachers and students before school returning”, Phuoc told The Hanoi Times.