Education authorities chart three options for September school re-opening

Teachers have received curriculum guidelines for three possible scenarios when schools reopen in September in the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic.

While the authorities are adamant that schools will reopen as normal on 28 September, they have considered two other options - children attending school in alternating groups, or learning will completely revert back online.

The scenarios are listed in curriculum guidelines issued by the education authorities to educators on Monday.

The preferred scenario is for schools to open as usual where all children attend. The second scenario will see schools reopen but classrooms with fewer students since they will be attending on alternate days. The third scenario envisages a situation where schools will not reopen and teaching is done online.

Under the online option, teachers will have to send recorded messages to inform the way forward. Educators are also being instructed to meet the children online every day at a specific time of their choice to carry out a planned activity, while observing and listening to the children.

The curriculum guidelines cover all year groups from kinder to secondary school.

Educators are also being encouraged to spend the first few lessons trying to understand whether students have any learning gaps to be able to address them.

Schools were shut down in March soon after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in Malta.

Teaching was done online but government schools did not have a uniform platform or system of teaching.

The curriculum guidelines can be found here.