Tele-classes for Key Stage 1 and 2 will launch on Sunday next week, says Minister of Education Dr. Aishath Ali.
Speaking at Thursday night's press briefing at the National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC), the minister stated that teleclasses are currently ongoing for grades 7,8,9,10 and 11. As such, teleclasses for key stages 1 and 2 (grades 1,2,3,4,5 and 6) will launch on Sunday next week, said the minister.
Highlighting that learning packs have been prepared for foundation stages (Lower and Upper Kindergarten), the minister stated that parents can home-school their children with the help of these materials, adding that the children can also be taught through play.
Shedding light on the Education Emergency Plan, the minister stated that the initial focus of the plan was to design SOP's according to various alert levels. The second focus was avenues to conduct classes in the scenario where schools are closed.
The teleclass programme, broadcast via Public Service Media (PSM)'s YesTV, has been conducting classes for students of Grades 10 and 11, who are preparing for upcoming exams. The classes also include interactive Q&A sessions with teachers held through "Google Classrooms".
She went onto reveal that the ministry is working on a monitoring system for these online classes as well, adding that the support of parents is essential for the success of this program.
Moreover, a survey on the types of resources available to students was also carried out.
The minister disclosed that local Internet Service Providers - Dhiraagu and Ooredoo - have provided one month worth of data to teachers and students.
She also noted donations by the World Bank, Unicef and Global Partnership for Education (GPE).
Preparations for schools re-opening is also underway, said the minister.
The minister reiterated the need for parental support during online classes and appealed for their assistance in monitoring whether students attend classes or not.
Schools and all other educational institutions across the Maldives will be closed for the fourth week in a row since government holidays were declared on March 19th.
