PRAGUE – Students will return to the classroom in September, albeit with some additional hygiene regulations, reported iDnes on Tuesday. The Minister of Health, Adam Vojtěch, and the Minister of Education, Robert Plaga, agreed that the health protection measures will be based on the “traffic light” system, which will evaluate risk on a scale. According to Plaga, “There are no plans in any of the scenarios for the classes to be divided, and on September 1, all the pupils will return to school in the standard classes,” reported iDnes.
Vojtěch emphasized on Twitter that the opening of schools should be accompanied by adherence to hygiene regulations, such as frequent hand washing and disinfection, as well as the ventilation of classrooms. Schools will be provided with a recommendation manual in order to prepare appropriately before the start of the new school year.
Mask wearing will be decided by individual regions and dependent on local conditions. “If during the autumn there is an obligation to wear veils throughout Czech society, then of course Czech schools will not be an exception,” said Plaga. The possibility that a school may close due to a local outbreak will be a decision made by regional authorities.
iDnes and CTK also report that a bill is making its way through Czech Parliament that will address the implementation of internet-based learning if the pandemic were to significantly worsen. Schools were previously closed in March due to the coronavirus pandemic and some measures were only lifted after several months.
