Pattaya schools are ready to open for a semester unlike one neither students nor teachers have ever seen.
Closed by the coronavirus pandemic, schools continue to be seen as high-risk venues for transmission of Covid-19. But, with Thailand going nearly a month without a locally transmitted case of the virus, schools must finally reopen July 1, with plenty of precautions.
Deputy Mayor Banlue Kullavanijaya surveyed the preparations at Pattaya schools 3 and 4 June 23. What he saw was an environment that didn’t look like any classroom he’d ever been in.
Desks, students and teachers are spaced widely apart to reinforce social distancing. Pupils and staff will have to wear face masks at all times, and each classroom or facility will have hand-washing points and plenty of available hand sanitizer.
Students will be screened for temperatures and illness symptoms each day, with any child showing a fever or even the sniffles sent home. Parents have been told to supply redundant emergency contact information in case kids have to be dismissed.
School janitors also will be working overtime, cleaning all touch services indoors and outdoors daily, while administrators will have to police the children to keep them out of big groups. (PCPR)