EDUCATIONAL MEASURES FOR SCHOOL CLASSES

[Anchor Lead]

Schools in Korea is scheduled to open on April 6th, but concerns mount over the possibility of infection in classrooms. So the Ministry of Education is looking into providing online lessons through education TV and internet. The government is currently setting up online classroom guidelines and plans to test the e-learning system next week.

[Pkg]

Schools in Korea are due to open on April 6th after three postponements. But authorities are still concerned about the safety of students.

[Soundbite] YOON TAE-HO(CENTRAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT HEADQUARTERS) : "Presently, it's not possible to evaluate the safety of opening schools on April 6th."

The Education Ministry is looking into providing online lessons in case school opening is delayed again or cluster infection occurs after the new term begins. The government helped prepare for remote learning by opening online classrooms on March 2nd and establishing an integrated online learning information system called "SchoolON" on March 10th. The ministry also plans to collaborate with EBS to provide free educational contents and subsidize computer rental fees or internet costs for students from low income families. Online classroom operational guidelines are also being established.

[Soundbite] YOO EUN-HAE(MINISTER OF EDUCATION) : "We are currently setting up the operational guidelines for remote education that recognizes the number of remote classes. The guidelines will be announced after incorporating opinions from the schools."

Now the issue is whether this should apply to all schools nationwide or different systems should be used depending on school level or region. A source inside the Ministry said the government is weighing various options, such as offline or online school opening or another postponement, and added that the decision will be made sometime next week after taking into consideration relevant factors until this weekend. From next week, the ministry will select a few schools to test online classes.