China coronavirus: Hong Kong students face exam crunch as school year takes another hit after suspension caused by protests
- Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced on Saturday that all kindergartens, primary and secondary schools would remain closed until February 17
- Suspension could hurt those facing university entrance examinations later this year, with schools considering squeezing two exams into one day to catch up
As part of the contingency measures announced on Saturday afternoon, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said classes at secondary schools and all grades below would be suspended until February 17 due to the outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus.
As the deadly disease continued to spread, reaching many countries around the world and claiming more than 50 lives in mainland China alone, all eight public universities in Hong Kong, plus the Open University, also on Saturday announced extensions to their Lunar New Year break, not requiring students to return until February 17.
The Hong Kong government had been under pressure to call off classes after parents, teachers and principals looked to Macau on Friday where the casino hub announced a class suspension until February 10.
Chairman of the Hong Kong Association of the Heads of Secondary Schools Teddy Tang Chun-keung said he trusted the government was doing whatever they could given the fast-changing nature of the viral outbreak.