Distance education possible in lower secondary schools

The principal of the school must first ensure that other measures to avoid congestion are exhausted before distance education can be considered. Examples of measures to reduce the risk of the spread of infection mentioned in the government's decision are changed scheduling so that not all students are at school at the same time, using other vacant premises and avoiding activities that gather people from different classes and teachers' teams.

The provision does not apply to special schools.

The government's decision states that lower secondary schools can offer remote education and distance education.

The National Agency for Education explains the two concepts in the following way:

Remote learning is interactive teaching that is conducted with information and communication technology where students and teachers are separated in rooms but not in time.

Distance learning can be both analog and digital. Students and teachers are usually separated, but can work together in real time or, for example, with tasks to be done within the allotted time. Students and teachers often use common areas such as shared documents, video calls and chats. They can be separated in both space and time.