They say younger pupils should remain home for another two weeks
Teachers and principals yesterday pressed the government to reopen schools in stages as officials prepared to announce when pupils will be allowed to return to class.
The government is due to announce today or tomorrow whether classes will resume next Tuesday as planned. Schools have been shut as an anti-Sars precaution since March 29.
Principal Fung Ka-ching, vice-president of the Hong Kong Subsidised Primary Schools Council, said his group had urged the government to resume Primary Four to Six classes next week and the rest of the classes two weeks later. 'With a smaller number of students at the beginning, teachers can better monitor and educate them about prevention of pneumonia. Once that's achieved, teachers can focus on the lower grades,' he said.
Ho Hon-kuen, vice-president of pressure group Education Convergence, said schools, especially those in virus hotspots, should be allowed to remain shut, with the agreement of parents and teachers.
A survey of 100 primary school students by Hong Kong Christian Service yesterday showed that the majority of respondents were worried about going back to school.
