The Minister has identified criteria for the return of distance education: two thresholds will be established

On Wednesday evening, S. Skvernelis announced on his Facebook account that children and their parents can calmly prepare for the celebration of September 1, because the school year will start in educational institutions and not on computer screens From home.

According to him, with epidemiologists there are conditions in which learning will take place in the usual way, and when masks will be introduced or the need for distance learning will be considered, according to S. Skvernelis, no Lithuanian municipality has reached the threshold of risk so far.

“Educational institutions will operate and guarantee the safety of students and teachers. We are introducing clear criteria from which we will organize the educational process evaluating the situation in each municipality, ”said the Prime Minister.

Education, Science and Sports Minister Algirdas Monkevičius also said Thursday that the school year is scheduled to start in the usual way, but in accordance with the highest safety requirements. According to him, the distance education method could be partly applied in the upper classes, while the aim is for preschool and primary education to develop directly.

The beginning of the school year in general and vocational schools will begin on September 1, but first-year higher education students are advised to delay the start of the school year, possibly September 14, as admission to universities and colleges only end at the end of August this year. the last contracts will be signed in early September.

Ask for uniforms ironing

The September 1 education will take place in the usual way, but subject to certain security requirements, and the changing situation will be assessed starting this week.

“If there are questions about whether to compare a student’s uniform, yes, the school year will start normally,” Monkevičius said Thursday morning.

He said the situation would change according to two established indicators.

It is proposed to take into account the criteria that epidemiologists will establish. Two thresholds will be established: case A, where there are 16 cases per 100,000 in the municipality. population, and another indicator, if at least 10 percent of new cases are not related to localized, managed or imported cases, it will be considered for the mandatory use of masks and other requirements ”, said A. Monkevičius.

He also named specific numbers on when to switch to distance learning.

“The next threshold is higher – if in a particular municipality with 25 infections 100 thousand population, then the possibility of moving to distance education in a specific municipality will be evaluated, perhaps locally, at the points where it will be determined” said the Minister.

“So far, no Lithuanian municipality meets these criteria,” presented the latest information.

“At the beginning of the school year, the celebrations of September 1 should be encouraged, they should take place, but we will ask them to comply with the requirements in force at that time in terms of organizing events. We recommend keeping parties outdoors, as little as possible they should take place indoors, ”said A. Monkevičius about the changes.

Work in schools will change

Jolanta Navickaitė, director of the Department of General Education of the Ministry of Education and Science, presented the requirements that educational institutions must meet.

“I would like to point out that on September 1 we will return to schools, the educational process will be a little different, we will have to follow all the established requirements so that the educational process is organized safely,” a ministry spokeswoman said at a conference on press on Thursday.

She argued that students in different classes should have as little contact as possible in schools, adhere to the principle of group isolation, and monitor the health of students and staff.

“As now, children and workers with fever or other acute signs of upper respiratory disease are prohibited from participating in the educational process.”

From the beginning of the school year, the principle should be applied that teachers should walk around classrooms, not students, they should be in the same room.

“Thinking about the fact that students must work in their assigned classes, we strongly recommend that schools plan student work in such a way that students of different classes and different ages are in different hallways, perhaps in part, such Once they distribute the classrooms on different floors “, J. Navickaitė named the proposals.

Schools should also use special plans for the movement of pupils in schools: to the cafeteria, to the bathroom, etc. You are encouraged to enter the schools in more than one entry and to consider different start and end times for the lesson.

Educational institutions are also encouraged to carefully design lesson schedules.

“It is recommended that schools plan the lesson schedule so that it can be easily restructured if the deteriorating epidemiological situation requires a change in the form of education to distance education. This will avoid some misunderstandings, “a ministry spokeswoman told a news conference.

Classes can be divided

The Minister of Education, Science and Sports A. Monkevičius stated that so far the requirements are sufficient, but if the situation worsens, classes can be divided in half.

“We will have to comply with the requirements that will be established. I believe that for the moment these requirements are the following: observe hygiene, ventilate the premises, do not mix the flows. Focusing on the current situation, we believe that it is sufficient. But if they are exceeded morbidity rates in that area (…), it will be decided how to regulate both the flows and the proportions of children in the classroom. If necessary, divide the classes into two parts – it would require funds, we have calculated – it can range between 16-17 million euros a month, if it must be done nationwide, of course, it will not be, “said A. Monkevičius on further measures.

According to the Minister, the requirements apply to all educational institutions.

“The general requirements are the same everywhere, in all educational institutions, the same requirements apply to non-formal education,” said the minister.

All the requirements listed by the Ministry for educational institutions will be discussed at the Government meeting next week.

The Minister of Education, Science and Sports A. Monkevičius stated that so far the requirements are sufficient, but if the situation worsens, classes can be divided in half.

“We will have to comply with the requirements that will be established. I believe that for the moment these requirements are the following: observe hygiene, ventilate the premises, do not mix the flows. Focusing on the current situation, we believe that it is sufficient. But if they are exceeded morbidity rates in that area (…), it will be decided how to regulate both the flows and the proportions of children in the classroom. If necessary, divide the classes into two parts – it would require funds, we have calculated – it can range between 16-17 million euros a month, if it must be done nationwide, of course, it will not be, “said A. Monkevičius on further measures.

According to the Minister, the requirements apply to all educational institutions.

“The general requirements are the same everywhere, in all educational institutions, the same requirements apply to non-formal education,” said the minister.

All the requirements listed by the Ministry for educational institutions will be discussed at the Government meeting next week. Schools are advised to extend long breaks even further, not only to air out the facilities, but also for lunch in the streams. Therefore, the school day may end a little later.

Perform ratio analysis in math

Speaking about the poor results of the math tests this year, the minister said that almost all the information about it had already been provided by representatives of the National Education Agency and said that the answers given were detailed enough.

However, he reiterated that it should be based on the analysis, discuss it and anticipate the actions that will be taken as a result.

“Those things have a certain inertia, because not all changes in the curriculum can happen in one year. In fact, they have already started, the testing of the prepared program projects will begin in September and the implementation of the relevant measures – teacher qualifications, management, educational assistance – but we have another action plan planned as of September 1 ” .

According to A. Monkevičius, we are already thinking about how to help those who are preparing for next year’s math test t. and. seniors who are doing worse with math or something else.

“Here are some things that we would like to use for universities to do national analyzes, but we already see what we have to do to help those children.”

He first mentioned the support for teacher qualifications and mentioned that the curriculum is also good at the moment, but some things are related to socio-psychological problems and apply the case analysis to each child as he sees it and tries to close the gaps.

“In Lithuania, we see those who pass these exams perfectly, who have good achievements, but a significant part do not,” he said.

So, the minister explained, he has a systematic plan and has a plan to help next year’s graduates.

Surplys: Quarantine in schools can be introduced during the day.

After the minister’s speech, the head of the Public Information Group, Giedrius Surplys, said that quarantine in schools could be introduced in just one day.

“The quarantine can be announced in one day and the students will continue their studies from home,” Surplys said.