Egypt’s Ministry of Education stated on Sunday that school students will be allowed not to attend classes for the rest of the first semester, but they will have to take the exams in person at school.

The Ministry of Education's announcement comes on the back of efforts to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

Egyptian health ministry reported 664 new coronavirus cases on Sunday, bringing the total infection tally to 125,555 since the outbreak began in February.

While attending classes is optional, schools will remain open to receive students willing to attend, the ministry added.

It stated that it will not cancel any parts of the curricula due to its decision concerning school attendance.

Mid-term exams for students in fourth primary until third preparatory will begin on 10 January, the ministry noted.

For these grades, students at home should follow the educational channel “Madrasetna 1” on YouTube, in addition to other digital platforms, including new.edmodo.com, study.ekb.eg and stream.moe.gov.eg, the ministry said.

According to the newly applied educational programme 2.0, no exams are held for students in grades less than the fourth primary.

A teacher’s guide will be available on the ministry’s website for parents of students staying at home.

Exams for students in first and second secondary stage will be held online according to a schedule the ministry will announce later.

The students will be allowed to follow classes on the YouTube channel “Madrasetna 2”, lms.ekb.eg, hesas.eg, as well as new.edmodo.com and stream.moe.gov.eg.

Minister of Education Tarek Shawki told the media on Sunday the New decisions apply to both private and governmental schools.

He affirmed that under no circumstances will students be allowed to pass without taking the exams.

If the coronavirus spreads uncontrollably, the ministry will postpone the exams but will not cancel the semester, he said.

Last semester, the government took a number of decisions to protect school students from the coronavirus, including replacing exams with research papers and online tests.

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