Beijing announces resumption dates for some schools' new semesters

The municipal education authorities in Beijing announced the dates for the start of the new school semester for some schools on Sunday, leaving only Hubei province still undecided on when to allow any students to return to school.

Students in their final year at junior high schools in Beijing are scheduled to return to school on May 11, while those attending senior high schools in the nation's capital will return on April 27, as the suspension of in-school education necessitated by the novel coronavirus pneumonia epidemic is lifted.

Beijing Municipal Education Commission spokesman Li Yi also told a news conference on Sunday afternoon that the college entrance examination in Beijing is scheduled to be held from July 7 to 10.

The entrance examination for Beijing senior high schools will be held from July 17 to 19.

There are a number of specific requirements students and teachers must meet to be able to return to school.

Those who have not left the city or those who have stayed in Beijing for 14 successive days without symptoms can return to school.

Students who have left Beijing should be back in the city two weeks before the resumption of school and finish the 14-day home or integrated quarantine with a negative result in nucleic acid testing.

School staff members and teachers should be on duty 10 days before the resumption of classes to get prepared.

The schedule for the resumption of school for other grades, as well as kindergartens, colleges and special education schools, will be determined later, the commission said.

"Students in kindergartens are relatively weak in their ability to protect themselves, so they require more consideration, while the resumption of colleges means a big crowded population at campuses and dorms, which is not safe," it said in an explanatory document.

College students who study in Beijing have been told to stay in their hometowns.

In Beijing, senior students in junior high and senior high schools started online courses last month, while students in other grades and primary school students will start online courses on Monday.

Elsewhere, Guizhou province announced on Sunday that nongraduating classes in junior high and senior high schools will be back at school on April 28.

Students in their final year at junior high and senior high schools in Guizhou returned to schools in mid-March.