SIBU, June 24: A total of 3,317 Form 5 students and 705 Form 6 students from 22 schools in Sibu District returned to class today under strict standard operating procedures (SOPs).
Sibu District Education Department head Ahli Chiba said he was satisfied the reopening has proceeded without a hitch based on reports and photographs from his officers monitoring the situation.
Eleven teams comprising three persons per group were tasked with carrying out inspections before classes start at 12 noon.
“From the initial report and photographs presented to me by the teams, it was found that everything went on smoothly. The SOP was followed where students and teachers are wearing face masks, sanitising their hands, getting their temperatures checked and observing social distancing,” he said.
“We will continue to monitor these schools until June 26 as we need to report to the Education Ministry.”
He noted these schools have been preparing for reopening for more than three weeks.
Meanwhile, Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) chairman Clarence Ting who sent his son to SMK Methodist at 6.20am today was “glad to see the school SOP is in place, safe for my son and all the students.”
Prior to arriving at the school, he was anticipating long queues but was surprised to see that there was none.
“What I found was different. Policemen were also there to ensure that SOPs were in place at three entrances to prevent congestion,” he said, adding he was informed the principal that more than 440 students from Form 5 and 6 were expected to attend school there today.
“Classes were split with not more than 20 students per classroom. The principal said the current situation is manageable, but if the whole student body were to start, getting enough classrooms to accommodate all will be a big challenge.”
On SMC’s part, he said they are also checking what they could help with to make it safer for school children to return to school. — DayakDaily
