Partial return to classrooms promised if epidemic emergency level is lowered

Final years in elementary schools, high schools and higher vocational schools will return to class if the current Counter-Epidemic System [PES] is lowered from level five to level four, Education Minister Robert Plaga said on Monday. The lowering of the emergency level would also result in restoring classroom teaching for groups of up to 20 pupils at high schools and vocational schools. Pupils in the younger classes of grammar schools and at secondary schools would be educated on a rotational basis, studying at home for one half of the week and at school for the other half.

Mr. Plaga said that a full return to normal for elementary and high school students would take place if the PES system emergency threat was lowered to level two.

The Counter-Epidemic Score (PES) is a new system of evaluating the state of the coronavirus epidemic in the country. It envisions five levels of alertness based on a number lying between 1 to 100. The number is calculated from the value of the reproduction number, the rate of individuals who have tested positive over the past seven days and the number of infected among the general and senior population.