The new amendment to the Education Law requires schools and some kindergartens to schedule distance learning classes, which will start from September 1st. This obligation is part of the changes, which have to come in order to prevent the rise of the coronavirus cases, according to the Ministry of Health.
Schools will receive 1.2 billion Czech crowns specifically to purchase new computers and licensed software by mid-October. Schools will have time to get new equipment by December. The priority will be given to teachers and students from families with a difficult financial situation.
Teachers and administration will have to consult with parents on how to build a suitable schedule. Students without computers won’t have to submit assignments through the computer; they will be allowed to get tasks on the telephone. The same will be with the entrance examinations: schools will have to adapt to the situation.
If the student can’t visit the classes, their parents have to provide sick leave, as usual.
Language and art schools will remain in the offline regime. They will be required to provide the online study plan but the decision will remain to the administration and the parents.
Quarantine significantly affected the attendance of the classes. Schools were closed from March 11th and started to partially open only in May.
All of those requirements do not mean that students won’t be able to visit schools. The new amendment was supposed to help in times of emergencies and health dangers, when students can’t visit classes in person.
As for the regular courses in schools, the new rules are obligatory from September 1st. Students will have to follow the hygiene rules by washing hands and using sanitizers. The masks won’t be required in classes, but students will be required to wear them outside of the classrooms.
