Sharjah Private Education Authority issues a guide to reopening schools in the emirate
The Sharjah Private Education Authority has issued a comprehensive guide to reopening private schools in the emirate for the academic year 2020-2021, including the policies, protocols and precautionary measures that private schools must follow in order to provide a safe and healthy educational environment, as the document focuses on describing health and safety measures recommended by the authorities Concerned in the state.
The authority confirmed that it will carry out inspection campaigns in cooperation with other concerned authorities in the emirate to measure and follow up the extent of schools' compliance with the guidelines and hold non-compliant schools accountable, and this may include fining the school or assigning the school to switch to distance learning until further notice. The school teams authorized to deal with Covid 19 inside the schools Which will be formed in each school as the guide shows - monitoring the implementation of the instructions, and knowing the extent of commitment of the members of the school community, including students, teachers, other school staff and parents, and invited the private schools of the emirate to review the document and use it to prepare their operational plans for the reopening, including plans As related as communication plans with parents.
The Director of the Sharjah Special Education Authority, Ali Al Hosani, said that the issuance of the guide came simultaneously with the approaching new school year, as students return to study after the application of the distance learning system during the third semester of the academic year 2019-2020 and after a break of more than five months, confirming the end All preparations to ensure a confident start for the year that begins in exceptional circumstances, pointing out that the guide issued by the authority and the private schools received a copy of it had been formulated in coordination with several bodies to secure prevention and safety benefits for the school community.
He explained that the authority is betting mainly on the awareness of the field educational community and its commitment to the instructions and preventive measures to control the epidemic and work to its decline and prevent its spread, stressing the need to follow the preventive and health instructions announced by the competent authorities in the state by adhering to physical distancing, preventing gatherings, implementing comprehensive sterilization operations and adherence to By wearing masks, adding that all the policies and protocols listed in the guide came to ensure the maintenance of students ’health and safety as a top priority.
The authority was keen to inform schools about the content of the guide, which aims to ensure the security and safety of students and workers in educational institutions, in order to develop and implement policies, procedures and protection measures that are in line with operational guidelines related to the safety and health of students, parents, school personnel and visitors to control and limit the spread of the Corona Covid 19 virus.
The procedures and instructions contained in the guide cover all aspects that guarantee the health and safety of students, including: procedures for reopening schools and dealing with risks associated with the Coronavirus, entry procedures, receiving and delivering books and school uniforms, hygiene, sterilization, periodic disinfection, physical distancing, and the mechanism for dealing with suspected cases, And school transportation, food, rest place, library and prayer hall, in addition to activities and activities.
The guide identified the main general risks that must be taken into account and dealt with when schools reopen, which is the transmission of infection through large gatherings in areas such as entry and exit points, the canteen, or during evaluation sessions, and parents receiving their children, noting the importance of dealing with the risks of school transportation carefully according to On the number of students allowed in the school buildings at any time, and to ensure that there are sufficient and appropriate isolation spaces, medical supplies, and staff to support the process of containing the spread of the virus and the ability to deal with it.
Dedicated team
The focus of the guidelines for reopening private schools and dealing with the risks associated with the Covid 19 virus is of great importance, as the guide defines the basic procedures that must be adhered to to ensure the safety and health of students, including the formation of a team in each school to deal with the health pandemic that includes in its membership employees from all departments, whose responsibility is In the precautionary measures to reopen schools, ensure the application of guidelines to conduct a risk assessment and ensure that the school is ready to reopen, work to appoint a team of school health and safety officials to handle emergency situations and follow them up, monitor the application of health and safety measures, and conduct all necessary training courses for students and school staff, and publish Educational information for parents and other stakeholders. He is also responsible for supervising the provision of isolation rooms within the school buildings.
Examination is mandatory
According to the guide, a Covid 19 examination will be conducted - in cooperation with the health authorities in Sharjah - for all students, teachers and cadres in all private schools before actually joining the school, to ensure the safety of students and school staff, and regular checks will be conducted for students, teachers and other school personnel, provided that it continues The authority is with the schools regarding any relevant developments from the concerned health authorities in Sharjah.
The authority allowed schools to return to school hours according to three teaching models: the first is a full day with all students, and the second is a two-shift model, which enables schools to approve the mechanism for distributing students at intervals as they see fit, and the third model, which is the hybrid education model in which students alternate between distance learning Physically attending classes, while how to implement safety measures and physical distancing will determine the teaching model that schools will follow.
The guide includes school hygiene and safety procedures, setting clear guidelines for physical spacing procedures in classrooms, physical distancing in the pre-primary stage / first year foundation, kindergarten first / foundation year two, and kindergarten second / first year, by placing them in "fixed" groups that include Ten children or less, with each group giving importance and care in a room that no children outside of this fixed group can access, while keeping each batch of students together where possible, in addition to physical distancing measures in the corridors and in the eating areas.
Controls for the use of chapels and common areas
The guide reviewed the controls for the use of chapels in schools, and the special procedures inside the offices of the teaching and administrative bodies, common areas, and libraries, stressing the complete commitment to the one and a half meters physical distance, continuous sterilization, and the commitment to the limited use of equipment in outdoor learning areas, with an emphasis on closing some types of areas Play.
The guide obliges the school staff members to refrain from leaving the school during school hours, and if they leave the school for emergency reasons, they will not be allowed to enter it again unless they undergo complete sterilization and change their clothes upon their return and undergo a thermal examination before entering, specifying the requirements for personal protective equipment and the necessity to wear it throughout the school day, with the exception Students under the age of six wear masks, with schools must maintain a stock of masks to cover the need, and distribute hand sanitizers in all school buildings and areas, with clear instructions and signs and encourage students to wash and sterilize their hands at regular intervals during the day.
Complete and thorough sterilization
Cleaning and hygiene procedures required schools to conduct complete sterilization for all parts of the school before it was officially opened and at the end of each school week with comprehensive sterilization of all facilities. It also set controls for students 'arrival and departure from schools, categorically preventing the entry of students' families to the school campus, while determining the points of receipt and delivery, and the implementation of a plan Separate for bus students, as the guide devoted special procedures for school transportation, including the process of sterilizing buses daily, and requiring them to have a capacity of no more than 50%, while taking care of physical distance.
Sterilize books and uniforms
The guide stressed on ensuring that schools implement health measures in the rest areas, as well as food and nutrition, with the call in the “materials and equipment axis” to reduce the use of common materials and prevent the participation of stationery and others, and to properly fill in school books and school uniforms and sterilize them before the start of the distribution process and avoid gatherings. And queues during the distribution process. The guide also dealt with controls for student and teaching staff affairs, including travel controls, accounts and admission, with encouragement for online registration, as well as the procedures for dealing with vulnerable groups by the school team to deal with Covid 19 by identifying high-risk cases for those suffering from diseases and weak immunity.
Suspend all activities
According to the guide, group activities such as trips, celebrations, sports camps, etc., are suspended and replaced by extracurricular activities via the Internet, as well as the procedures to be followed in maintenance work, and the most important medical procedures required by schools from a qualified and trained school clinic with the allocation of an isolation room, treatment room and waiting areas, as well. The guide clarifies the mechanism for dealing with cases suspected of having the disease by notifying the guardian and the competent authorities with compliance by the schools with the requirements of the health authority for dealing with any suspected cases and tracking contacts and isolating them for a period of 14 days from the date of examining the case, with the application of the policy of staying in the handler if the student Or the employee is sick.
The guide included a focus on human resources, the relationship with parents, and the school's continuous communication with parents. And in the axis of inspection and commitment, the guide called for following guidelines and cooperation in order to keep schools safe environments.