Shanghai moves classes online as more COVID-19 cases emerge

SHANGHAI, March 11 (Xinhua) -- All primary and secondary schools in Shanghai will switch to online classes from Saturday in response to the city's current COVID-19 situation, the municipal education commission said Friday.

To ensure the safety and health of teachers and students, kindergartens and nurseries in Shanghai will be temporarily closed from Saturday, and no training or childcare institution is permitted to provide offline services, the commission said.

The municipal education commission has formulated online teaching guidelines for basic education and secondary vocational education. The length of each class, the total number of class hours each day and teaching capacity vary based on the physical and mental development of students at different ages.

According to the commission, students can attend classes through Shanghai's large-scale intelligent learning platform, Shanghai Education TV and other platforms, some of which also provide course videos for download.

Students who have difficulty studying at home can apply to attend online classes from schools, where supervision services and lunches will be provided.

The commission said that follow-up arrangements will be adjusted promptly depending on the development of the COVID-19 situation.

Shanghai on Thursday reported 11 locally transmitted COVID-19 cases and 32 imported cases, the National Health Commission said Friday.