The Ministry of Education is studying restoring in-person learning in the Dominican Republic. For months, private school associations have advocated for allowing private schools that have sufficient space to reinstate in-person education. Nationwide, thousands of communities have low incidence of the virus, but schools there are closed. The Ministry of Education has extensive distance learning programs in place, using television programming and the Internet. Nevertheless, school desertion is said to be high and growing.
A Technical Committee is working on the development of three protocols: the early childhood guidelines, the protocol for returning to semi in-person schooling and another for safe schools.
Public Health Minister Plutarco Arias for the Ministry of Public Health and Education Minister Roberto Fulcar for the Ministry of Education said on Thursday, 4 February 2021 that schools will be authorized to reopen depending on the evolution of the pandemic.
Deputy Public Health Minister Ivelisse Acosta says the Education-Public Health conversations for in-person learning have been working together since October 2020. She said it is likely that the decision will not be one for all the country, but that semi in-person learning will be restored in communities where the epidemiological conditions guarantee the health of teachers and children and classes can resume,” she said speaking during the press conference to announce the advances.
Public Health Minister Plutarco Arias has said that school should be able to resume in areas where the positivity is at most 10%.
Since last year, private schools have presented protocols for a safe return to in person learning at schools that have the adequate conditions even when they are in areas where there is virus spread, such as the capital city.
An editorial in Diario Libre advocates for the voluntary and safe return to the classrooms.
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Noticias SIN
Noticias SIN
El Dia
Listin Diario
5 February 2021