Turkey to partially resume in-person education mid-Feb

ANKARA

Turkey's village schools and kindergartens will resume in-person education on Feb. 15, the country's education minister said on Tuesday.

"As the pandemic in our villages is seen to have reached a low point, we are opening the village schools at all grades for in-person education full-time as of Feb. 15, so the education of our children will not be further interrupted," Ziya Selcuk told a news conference.

Teachers had been included in priority groups for vaccination, with those giving in-person education now planned to be vaccinated in February, Selcuk noted.

Highlighting the importance of initiation of a comprehensive program to compensate for learning losses, he said all kindergartens will open for full-time education on Feb. 15.

Starting on March 1, primary schools, including all grades, will resume in-person education twice a week, he added.

Also, schools will open their doors for students of grades 8 and 12 on March 1 to help them prepare for high school and university entrance exams, he said.

High school exams postponed in the first semester will be held in-person in March.

Special education schools and classes will start providing in-person education for students with special needs as of March 1.

The participation of students in face-to-face education at our schools will be dependent on the decision of our parents, as in the previous period, the minister also noted.

After partially reopening schools in late September, Turkey resumed its distance learning education as of Nov. 20, 2020 until Jan. 4, 2021.

Remote learning has been continuing on national broadcaster TRT's Education Information Network channels and live courses, while all teachers can carry out live lessons through the network.