KUALA LUMPUR – The Education Ministry should establish an emergency plan under the School Management and Operation Guidelines 4.0 to handle the potential spread of Covid-19 infections in schools, according to an expert.
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Education Faculty senior lecturer Anuar Ahmad said the plan is vital to ensure the safety of every student, pointing out that Education Minister Datuk Mohd Radzi Md Jidin has yet to address the formation of a contingency plan.
“What are school authorities, parents and students supposed to do if there is a spread of Covid-19 infections in a school? Daily number of Covid-19 cases might be going down, but those infected still number in the thousands,” Anuar told Getaran, The Vibes’ sister portal.
“This shows that the situation is still not completely safe.”
Anuar also raised concerns over what will happen to efforts to digitalise education, including the hybrid learning system that was implemented over the past two years.
“What will happen to the 150,000 electronic devices and laptops previously handed out to students? What about parents who had purchased devices for their children to sit for classes at home?” he said.
However, Anuar acknowledged that many students, especially the poor, were left behind in their studies when the Education Ministry implemented home-based teaching and learning as schools remained closed for more than 250 days.
He said it was important to help parents understand the impact the pandemic has had on their children’s learning and emotional state, and for remedial measures to be implemented once physical classes are back in full swing.
Despite the guidelines requiring additional improvements, Anuar said that he welcomes several new rules that will be implemented by the ministry once schools reopen on May 9.
The new rules include administering a Covid-19 self-test on symptomatic students as well as encouraging the wearing of face masks outside of buildings and at outdoor areas within a school compound or when doing group activities. – The Vibes, April 30, 2022
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