Minister of Education Pan Wen-chung (潘文忠) yesterday said that universities are adopting different measures for students seeking college admissions, such as conducting interviews via video conferences, amid concern over the spread of COVID-19.
More than 130,000 students are expected to take part in interviews — the second segment of the college entrance exam, Pan said.
The ministry is also working to ensure that proper disease-
Photo: Rachel Lin, Taipei Times
prevention measures are taken for the Comprehensive Assessment Program for Junior High School Students, scheduled to be held on May 16 and 17, with about 215,000 students participating; followed by the joint entrance exam for vocational colleges, with about 95,000 students participating; and the Advanced Subjects Test in July, he said.
The ministry has shared with other schools the detailed and comprehensive plans adopted by National Cheng Kung University, China Medical University, Asia University and Chang Gung University to safeguard against the spread of COVID-19, he said.
As university students return to school, the ministry would visit schools that have not yet made adequate preparations, he added.
Starting next month, the Ministry of Education is to deliver 94,000 liters of alcohol disinfectants to schools on a monthly basis as part of its preventive measures, Pan said.
The ministry is also expected to deliver a first batch of 84,000 liters of alcohol disinfectants to schools, cram schools, after-school programs and other facilities by Thursday next week.
A supply of 12,500 forehead thermometers has already been delivered to schools, Pan told reporters before attending a meeting in Taipei, adding that another 12,500 is expected to be sent on Monday.
About 4,100 elementary to senior-high schools had been disinfected before classes resumed on Tuesday after the extended Lunar New Year break, he said.
Students’ temperatures were taken on Tuesday before classes and 578 were found to have a fever, he said, adding that they were housed in a separate area before being picked up by their parents, Pan said.
The Department of Information and Technology Education and local-level education agencies are prepared for remote teaching should classes be suspended, he added.
Asked whether there was a shortage of thermometers at Chung Shan Industrial and Commercial School in Kaohsiung, Pan said that according to K-12 Education Administration Deputy Director-General Tai Shu-fen (戴淑芬), who visited the school on Tuesday, temperature checks at the school ran smoothly.
In response to New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi’s (侯友宜) announcement that schools in the city would not be hosting graduation trips or field trips in the meantime, Pan said the ministry respects the local government’s decision.
“Student health is the top priority,” he said.
The ministry had earlier released a list of items to watch out for when hosting field trips, but the situation is always changing, he said.
Schools should assess the situation carefully when hosting trips, he said.
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