The Hanoi People's Committee has just signed a document agreeing with the municipal Department of Education and Training's proposal to allow students of grades 1 to 6 across 18 suburban districts to resume face-to-face learning from February 10.

Accordingly, the 18 suburban localities include Ba Vi, Chuong My, Dan Phuong, Dong Anh, Gia Lam, Hoai Duc, Me Linh, My Duc, Phu Xuyen, Phuc Tho, Quoc Oai, Soc Son, Son Tay, Thach That, Thanh Oai, Thanh Tri, Thuong Tin, and Ung Hoa.

Meanwhile, pupils of grades one to six in the 12 central districts of Hanoi will continue to study online, and preschool children will stay home because these are areas with high or very high Covid-19 risks.

Students in Ba Dinh District of Hanoi take trial performance before going back to school. Photo: Nam Du

The municipal People’s Committee asked the education department to coordinate with the Department of Health to guide the district-level People’s Committees to observe anti-pandemic regulations during in-person learning activities.

Director of the Hanoi Department of Education and Training Tran The Cuong said that he wants parents and students to support schools by seriously following Covid-19 prevention measures to ensure student safety.

Schools are requested to meet safety requirements against the pandemic to welcome back students and only fully vaccinated teachers can lead in-person classes, Cuong noted.

Students will spend only half of a day at school, the director said, adding that the city requires schools not to conduct day-boarding services or open canteens and only teach one session (morning or afternoon) per day.

The Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control of districts was asked to prepare plans to respond to novel coronavirus infections in schools. They are authorized to decide on the closure of schools if necessary.

The latest Covid-19 risk evaluation said that Hanoi now has nine communes and wards deemed at a high-risk level, while the rest are considered at low or medium risk.

As of February 6, the capital city has recorded more than 145,000 Covid-19 patients since last April, when the fourth coronavirus wave resurfaced.

Earlier, on January 24, the Hanoi People's Committee had decided to allow students from grades 7 to 12 to return to school from February 8.

On February 3, Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son said it had drastically directed and guided localities to bring students back to school after Tet holiday. A total of 60 provinces and cities, aside from Hanoi and the southern Binh Duong and Dong Nai provinces, have scheduled in-person classes for all primary and preschool students this month.

Local authorities have been ordered to boost their child vaccination progress to immunize all those aged 12-17 with two doses within February. Nearly 14 million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered to students aged between 12 and 17 across the country, and more than 5.97 million of them, or 67%, have received two doses.

The ministry has also developed a plan to vaccinate children aged 5-11 against Covid-19 so that they can come back to schools after a long time of online learning due to the pandemic.