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© Julia Lazarova
It should take up to 10 days to switch to online education in schools because many people suffer from coronavirus – this is an order issued yesterday by the Minister of Education, Krassimir Valchev. It is based on the latest order of the Minister of Health Kostadin Angelov, according to which, for 15% of sick students, the school will switch to learning in an electronic environment. The previous order expected this to happen in 20% of patients.
High school students will move on to study from home first and, in case the epidemic situation worsens, students from high school classes (5th to 7th grade). Students in the initial stage (grades 1-4) will pass on-site e-learning “only in exceptional cases, only in case of objective impossibility of continuing the lesson in person”.
It is allowed until the end of the calendar year to alternate between the high school and high school classes that study in person and those that are online.
Valchev’s order replaces his Oct. 26 order, which allowed school leaders to request a transition to online education themselves under certain conditions and with the consent of parents and public council.
The new order preserves most of the current criteria, with the difference that up to half of the classes from 5th to 12th grade the directors can decide for themselves after a decision of the pedagogical council, agreed with the public council and taking into account the attitudes of the majority. of the parents of the students of the school.
This is what the new commandment says:
In the case of a large or constantly growing number of students infected with COVID-19 with flu-like symptoms similar to coronavirus and / or in quarantine, school principals may make a reasoned proposal to the Minister of Education to move to distance education in an electronic environment. for a certain period of time. Such proposals can only be made by schools in the red or orange zones according to the criteria of the Ministry of Health and are related to one of the following:
all classes in school
at least 50% of high school classes (grades 5-7) and both high school grades (grades 8-12) in the school combined
two or more early stage classes (grades 1-4).
In the event of a high or ever-growing number of COVID-19-infected students with flu-like symptoms similar to coronavirus and / or in quarantine, concentrated in certain classes in a school, the school principal you may decide to switch to online training. for the respective classes for a certain period of time. This decision will also be available only to schools in the Red and Orange areas and will relate to one of the following:
up to 50% of high school classes and the two high school stages combined
a separate class in the initial stage
the need for alternation in the transition to learning in an electronic environment during the period to the end of the calendar year for classes in the high school stage and the two stages of high school at the secondary level.
These decisions should be made by the pedagogical council of the schools, in coordination with the public council and taking into account the attitudes of the majority of the parents in the school. They are notified to the corresponding regional department of education. The respective decision can be made after a recommendation from the local RHI and the regional crisis headquarters.
When deciding whether to switch to online education, schools should be guided by the principle that older students go first and, in the event of a continued deterioration of the epidemic situation, those in secondary school. Only in exceptional cases, when education cannot continue in school, e-learning can be approved at the initial stage. The period in which distance education will be in accordance with the epidemic situation and the practice approved by the RHI in such cases, to take into account that this training is a priority for the achievement of the educational and socialization goals set, and not to exceed 10 school days. . If necessary, it will be possible to continue with the specified procedure under the same conditions.
The situation today
“Today, 44% of students will study in an electronic environment, until yesterday it was 38-39%,” Krassimir Valchev told Nova TV this morning, explaining that there are currently much fewer cases of coronavirus among young students. than in the big ones. 39% of students study from home based on district headquarters decisions, while the remaining 5%, or 130 schools, went online after permission. In 1,300 schools, there is not a single case of coronavirus among students or teachers. They are about 55% of the entire system, and it is mainly schools in small settlements, Valchev said.
According to him, the important question when offering training in an online environment is how long it will take. “I think that a very small part of us and the teachers will support the option of distance education by the end of the year. After the second or third week, children lose their commitment to learning, mental problems accumulate, children they become desolate, physical activity also decreases, “he said. the Minister of Education. For this reason, the Ministry of Education and Science offered the regional headquarters options for alternate students. “Our goal is to make the system easy, there are prerequisites for this. Our general guidelines are that children do not study online for more than 2-3 weeks,” he said.
Next week we will discuss whether the wearing of masks in class should be mandatory, Valchev said, recalling that currently every school principal has the right to decide whether children should wear masks in class.
“There are different practices in other countries. Those who have not adopted our model of non-interaction between classes have demanded the use of masks in class, but this is for people over 12 years old. We said more than 4th grade, which is more or less what It is inappropriate, difficult for young children, and there are studies published in reputable scientific journals that show that young students are also less likely to carry the virus, a fact that is often debated as to whether schools are the main cause. They are certainly a contributing factor, like any other great environment, but we already have enough research that says young students are less contributors, ”said the Minister of Education.
“In January and February, when seasonal flu viruses are expected, there will probably be 2-3 weeks of online training,” he suggested. The possibility of reducing summer vacations and extending winter vacations is also being discussed.
