Positive COVID-19 Cases Force Yio Chu Kang P1 And Other Schools To Move To Home-based Learning

A pupil from Yio Chu Kang Primary School tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday (May 12). He last attended school on Monday and was reported to be doing well. But the next day, he complained of feeling ‘unwell,’ and post medical consultation was found to be Covid positive.  

This case promoted Yio Chu Kang Primary School to transition to online classes until 18 May.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t a one-off case. As a precautionary measure other schools have also transitioned to home-based learning including Victoria Junior College, Edgefield Secondary School, Kong Hwa School, St Stephen, and most recently – Learning Point, where a tutor also tested positive on Wednesday (12 May). 

School Students & Teachers Are Testing Positive: What Parents Must Know About The Current Situation

1. The Yio Chu Kang Primary School Case

The Ministry of Education (MOE) confirmed the case was from Yio Chu Kang Primary School on Thursday (13 May). The Ministry of Health (MOH) also stated that it was not “a school-based infection” as the pupil was infected by a household member.

According to The Straits Times, Yio Chu Kang Primary School says the student was in close contact with an infected household member and was fine on Monday. He tested positive after reporting sick the next day. 

Students and staff who were in close contact with the pupil are currently in quarantine until 24 May. MOH has also asked them to undergo swab testing.

As stated before, the school has made the decision to transition the rest of the pupils to home-based learning until 18 May. They also thoroughly cleaned and disinfected the school premises on Wednesday.  

Raffles Student Care Centre remains open

During this period, the school-based Raffles Student Care Centre will remain open for those enrolled from 7am to 7pm; with the exception of a few Primary 5 and 6 students.

Plus, all after-school and co-curricular activities are now suspended from 19 May till 21 May. 

The school has informed parents that the schedule for the remaining mid-year exam papers will be adjusted. This includes the weighted assessment for students from Primary 4 to 6.

2. Teacher from Learning Point confirmed to have COVID-19 infection

A 50-year-old tutor from Learning Point also recently tested positive for COVID-19. She developed diarrhoea and a headache on 3 May and was tested on 11 May. Her results came out positive the day after. 

According to a statement from the school to parents, the teacher last taught on Friday (7 May) at Century Square and on Saturday (8 May) at Parkway Centre.

The school also informed parents that classes for both centres at Century Square and Parkway Centre will be conducted through home-based learning like other Singapore schools until 26 May.

They also said that the teachers and staff who were in close contact with the tutor have been quarantined and that other Learning Point centres were not affected by this recent case.

Here’s the complete statement from the school.

Dear Parents,
 
We are writing to inform you that a Learning Point teacher at Parkway Centre and Century Square has tested positive for Covid 19 today. She last taught on Friday 7th at Century Square and Saturday 8th at Parkway Centre before feeling unwell and being tested positive.
 
As the safety of all our staff and students is a priority, we have immediately closed the Parkway and Century Square centres for the next 2 weeks. A thorough cleaning and sanitisation of the premises is being conducted this evening by professional cleaning services. The teacher has been quarantined, as have all the students who attended her classes.
 
All classes for both Century Square and Parkway Centre will be delivered online until May 26th. Teachers and staff members who were in contact with the affected teacher on the above dates have been quarantined. All other Learning Point centres are not affected by this recent incident.
 
Please be assured that we are taking all appropriate measures to ensure that all our children and staff are safe and secure. We are working closely with the authorities and will continue to monitor the situation very carefully.
 
We will keep you fully updated of any developments as soon as we have them. If you have any questions or concerns that you need clarification on, please do let us know.

3. More students from other schools test positive

After the first two cases came into light, two more cases have been reported; forcing more schools to move to home-based learning.

In this case, two students from Kong Hwa School and St Stephen’s School have tested positive. 

As per The Straits Times, both students were in close contact with another confirmed COVID-19 case. It was clarified that none of these infections was related to the school.

All staff and students who were also close contacts of the two cases are now placed under quarantine and given leave of absence. Both Kong Hwa School and St Stephen’s School have also undergone thorough cleaning and disinfection. 

St Stephen’s School has also stated that lesson packages will be available on the Student Learning Space. This is to help students complete them over the weekend. 

Another student from Temasek Polytechnic tested positive on Wednesday as well. According to a statement from the school, the student was last in school on Friday (7 May) and has not been on campus ever since.

The students started developing symptoms on Tuesday (11 May). Although, no students or staff will need to be quarantined or swabbed based on contract tracing that the MOH has assessed.

Schools Affected By The Recent Rise In Positive Cases

Updated COVID-19 Safety Measures You Should Be Aware Of

School Measures

• Exam-style seating arrangements to be put in place. 
• All students and staff to continue wearing masks, wash hands frequently, and wipe down equipment and tables. 
• If feeling unwell, students are advised to see a doctor immediately. 
• Unwell students will only return to school once fully recovered.
• Teachers can no longer wear just face shields while teaching, they are advised to wear masks instead.

Pre-school Measures

• Ban on all parents except those with newly enrolled children.
• Only support staff who help with operations to be allowed entry within centres.
• Mixing of children between different classes is not allowed.
• Field trips and other large outdoor group activities will be suspended.
• Parent-teacher conferences should be conducted online.

Group Size

• A reduced group size of 5 persons across activities in schools.
• Overall capacity for activities including lectures cannot exceed 50 persons.
• Preschool sessions should also only be conducted in groups of 5.

School Closures & Home-based Learning

• Home-based learning will be conducted for schools that have positive cases. 
• Schools will be given time for swab test results to come in before going offline again.
• All students and staff who have had close contact with a positive case will be quarantined.
• If necessary, students and staff will undergo swab testing.

Lead image source screengrab from YouTube / Kong Wing Yan

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