QCOSTARICA – The Minister of Public Education (MEP), Guiselle Cruz, announced Tuesday that schools will definitely re-open on Monday, July 12, to resume the 2021 school year, after a month and a half of suspension due to the rebound in covid-19 cases in May.
Among the changes will be the ability of more students to attend face-to-face classes, due to the MEP’s decision to reduce the distance between students in classrooms, to one 1 meter and not 1.8 meters as has been set so far.
The measure will allow public and private educational centers to receive more students, although the lessons continue in combined mode (face-to-face and online).
The 1 meter spacing will only apply to classrooms. In external environments, teachers’ rooms, lunchrooms or others spaces, the 1.8 meter distance will be maintained, explained Steven González, administrative vice minister of the MEP.
According to Cruz, data provided by the Caja Costarricense del Seguro Social (CCSS), indicate that of the 85,896 education workers, 83,053 (96.69%) have already received the first dose of the covid-19 vaccine and 9,083 to the second dose.
With almost all vaccinated, they hope to soon reach 100% presence among teachers and administrative staff.
The MEP will maintain the sanitary protocols for the use of masks, hand washing and disinfection added the vice minister.
2021 school year
Due to the interruption, the current school year will end on January 21, 2022, instead of the normal third week December, with a bread period for Christmas, from December 23 and January 2.
Graduations will take place on January 22nd.
The 2022 school period would start on February 17 and end on December 22.
Vice Minister González said that he hopes that the country will fully return to normal school activity at the beginning of the 2022 school year, when the country has achieved herd immunity with vaccination.
