" Barrier gestures, hand washing, cleaning the premises ": the Ministry of Education published a circular Friday evening to supervise the start of the new school year in September, which will be carried out under the same sanitary conditions as those applied at the end of the year school.
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“ All students are welcomed during school time. In order to guarantee the health of students and staff, and having regard to the epidemic situation at the date of this circular, compliance with essential health rules must be ensured, ”explains the text. " Barrier gestures, hand hygiene, wearing a mask for adults and students over 11 years old when the distance rules cannot be respected in confined spaces as well as in school transport, cleaning and ventilation of premises ", is it specified in this circular.
" Distance education " in case of " active circulation of the virus "
The ministry relies on the advice of the High Council for Public Health and the Defense Council in order to provide sanitary and educational support for a new school year. Despite the deconfinement in mid-May and the gradual reopening of schools, for the past three months, many children have never returned to school.
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However, " in the event that the health situation requires more stringent measures, due to the active circulation of the virus on all or part of the national territory, a plan for educational continuity, available for consultation in the coming days, will be put in place to providing distance education , ”continues the circular.
" We put ourselves in a position to respond to any eventuality, especially in the event that there is a second wave, which can intervene largely after the month of September. If this should happen, we have a national continuity plan (...) and in the worst case, by distance education, for which obviously we will continue to improve, "explained Minister Jean- Michel Blanquer during a trip to a Parisian high school on Friday. " Our objective is obviously to provide the best education for all students, " he said.
4% of students dropped out
To support the teams in the event of more stringent health measures, “ the ministry has drawn up a plan including, in addition to the health protocol, a reminder of the main actions to be carried out, advice and good practices on the organization of the service and digital equipment , the modalities for activating the virtual classes of Cned and My class at home, and a selection of digital educational resources available to teachers and families, ”she announces.
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Overall, “ the priority objective of this start of the school year is to establish a peaceful environment conducive to learning and resuming collective life. It is a question of closing the gaps which could have arisen from this health crisis, which implies identifying the specific needs of each pupil and responding to them in a personalized manner , ”insists the ministry. To do this, he announced mobilizing in particular " 1,500,000 overtime hours to reinforce personalized support and help with homework ".
Confinement and the health crisis have indeed widened certain inequalities: 4% of students dropped out, according to the ministry. Sometimes " much more ", testify to many teachers, who say they have, for some, lost up to " a third of the class ".