SSC exams to kick off on June 1 in a safe environment: Education ministry

All health and safety measures are in place in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic: Ministry

THE Ministry of Education and Higher Education has completed its preparations and taken all necessary precautions for the start of the examinations at the end of the second semester of the general and specialised Secondary School Certificate for the academic year 2019-20. The exams will start on Monday, June 1, and will continue for two weeks to end on June 13.

About 11,500 students will take exams this year, spread over 149 centres. The ministry plans to deploy about 6,100 employees to work as observers and in committees.

The ministry has fixed Wednesday (June 3) for the optional subjects’ exams (Business Administration, Arts, German, French, Japanese and Information Technology).

The test papers will be marked according to the announced schedule, and the results will be announced through the ministry’s website after their approval by HE the Minister of Education and Higher Education. The certificates will be received in schools and students will be notified of the date through a text message.

Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education Dr Ibrahim bin Saleh al Nuaimi had recently confirmed that the ministry attached great importance to high school students. He said comprehensive lessons were provided for all subjects to ensure that the learning objectives were adequately covered by multiple platforms for learning, in addition to the continuous communication between teachers and students.

He said the ministry’s preparations for the tests for school students (day and adult education categories) for the academic year 2019-20 are

Exams will continue for two weeks and end on June 13

About 11,500 students will take exams at 149 centres

The ministry plans to allocate about 6,100 employees to work as observers and in committees

A maximum of 8 students to be allowed in a classroom and 40 in a large gym with a distance of up to 4 metres to ensure that there is no crowding

Masks, gloves and sterilisers will be provided at all test centres, grading and control centres, along with thermometers

The exam to start at 9am so that all required precautions can be implemented

proceeding well.

In light of the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), the ministry worked in coordination with the Ministry of Public Health and other institutions in the country to ensure that these tests are carried out in safe conditions.

THE ministry also took into account that the test is appropriate in terms of content, as The Student Assessment Office carried out a number of procedures to implement the tests under these circumstances. This included distributing a maximum of eight students in a classroom and 40 in a large gym with a distance of up to four metres. This would help ensure there is no crowding in the examination rooms.

Besides, masks, gloves and sterilisers will be provided at all exam sites, grading and control centres, along with thermometers.

In this context, a health and safety manual has also been prepared for the second semester exam. Additionally, an awareness plan was also prepared for all groups participating in the test. The exam time was rescheduled to start at 9am so that all required precautions are implemented.

Dr Nuaimi said two buildings for grade assessment and Secondary Certificate control were shifted to two larger buildings to avoid congestion during the grading process. The distribution of the members of the grading and control committees was done according to the required safety procedures.

The ministry ensured the transportation to school is safe as most students will go to exam sites in their own cars while the rest will be transported through school buses, which will be carrying only eight students. The drivers will be isolated for 14 days before the start and until the end of the tests. The bus observer will also measure the temperature of the students before they enter the bus and the school to ensure they are not infected with the virus.

Meanwhile, the ministry has taken all precautionary measures during secondary school exams for students of the Religious Institute for the academic year 2019/2020.

The ministry said 48 students were distributed to six committees with eight students in each committee, in addition to allocating places to wait for students before exam starts according to the same mechanism followed in committees, adding that this is in implementation of the procedures for social distancing among students.

The exams, which were suspended on May 14 according to schedule, will start on June 1 and continue until June 13.

The ministry said the exams will be carried out easily according to the plan laid down in the testing committees. The religious institute administration has taken all precautionary measures and procedures to ensure that the process of the end of the second semester of the institute’s secondary certificate is carried out in a safe manner, the ministry said, adding that measures include sterilisation of the headquarters of the test committees, in order to preserve the health and safety of students and observers.

The ministry called on school principals and parents to create an enabling school and home environment to meet all students’ requirements in the optimal way in these exceptional circumstances. The ministry appealed to the students to adhere to the precautionary rules, regulations, directives and guidelines of the school, noting that the exams will proceed in accordance with the plans and timetable drawn for it.

In accordance with the ministerial decision issued by Minister of Education and Higher Education HE Dr Mohammed bin Abdul Wahed al Hammadi amending some provisions of the annual school calendar for the academic year 2019/2020, the dates of the second round of exams for all grades from (first to twelfth - day and adult education) for the academic year 2019/2020 will start from August 23, 2020 until August 31, 2020.

Staff attendance in schools for the academic year 2020/2021 will start from August 19 2020, while students begin classes for the same academic year on September 1 2020.

Regarding the process of selecting new teachers and filling vacancies for the upcoming academic year in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ministry pointed out that it has many opportunities and options, as it has developed several scenarios in this regard that ensure the educational process is progressing without any hindrance, while the vacancies will be filled by appointing university graduates in Qatar, as well as recruiting teachers from abroad for some majors, with testing and necessary interviews with them to be held remotely.