<Anchor>

Point out the number of patients in Korea. Yesterday (15th), the number of new confirmed patients per day was 74, and the cumulative number of confirmed patients at 00:00 today is 8,236. Yesterday and yesterday, the two-digit increase in the two consecutive days. In addition, the number of people who were judged to be cured and released from quarantine increased by more than 300 people per day. According to the analysis by the health authorities, about 9% of all confirmed cases have been cured and the treatment period has been on average for 15 days. Meanwhile, the number of people who died was 79, an increase of 4, and the fatality rate, which indicates the death rate among patients, rose slightly to 0.91%.

Today, the government has repeatedly stressed that the virus is difficult to dissipate quickly and prepare for a long-term war. In the midst of this, the Ministry of Education is expected to make a decision tomorrow about how to postpone the opening of elementary, middle, and high schools.

Reporter Han Ji-yeon.

<Reporter>

The number of people who agreed to the national petition to postpone school opening in April exceeded 100,000 in a week, and the ruling party emphasized the inevitability of delaying school opening.

[Lee Nak-yeon / In addition, Democratic Party of Corona 19 Chairman of the National Overcoming Committee: It seems inevitable to postpone the school's opening a little longer.]

The authorities also made it clear that the opening of the school on March 23 was difficult.

[Jung Eun-Kyung / Director of Disease Management Division: Until the end of March and early April, it is the same that it is necessary to maintain the parts of 'social distance'. This will be the same for schools.]

The public opinion on postponement of acting is increasing, and the Ministry of Education is deepening.

First of all, I am concerned about the disruption of the academic schedule.

If you postpone additional school days, you will need to reduce the number of days in the class by 10%, and you will lose your midterm and final exam schedule for the first semester.

In particular, in the case of high school 3, it is inevitable that not only various kinds of mock evaluations, but also the application form for the occasional application on September 7th and the entrance exam on November 19th.

There is also a realistic concern as to whether the fear of spreading Corona19 will be noticeably lowered by delaying another week or two.

In the medical field, it is pointed out that postponement is not enough, and even after the start of school, it is necessary to discuss ways to change the teaching method so that students' movements do not overlap as much as possible.

The Ministry of Education will announce whether to postpone the opening of school later tomorrow after final consultations with the quarantine authorities.

(Video coverage: Yongjin Joo, Video editing: Seunghee Lee)

▶ “I do n’t have a questionnaire”… 'Emergency care' anxiety
▶ The first day of online classes at university… 'Site paralysis follow-up' student confusion