Improved guidelines on school management under new norm released

PETALING JAYA: The Education Ministry has released improved school management guidelines called the “School Management and Operations Under the New Norm 2.0”.

It contains improvements from previous versions of the document, Education director-general Dr Habibah Abdul Rahim (pic) told a press conference on Thursday (Feb 18).

“The guideline touches on various safety aspects of the students, such as when they enter school, how to control their movement on school grounds and when they leave.

“It also shows how to manage students, teachers and school staff who are Covid-19 positive, close contacts and if they show symptoms, ” she said.

The guidelines came into effect on Feb 9.

Below are some points from the new guidelines:

> School administrators must maintain the confidentiality of students who are confirmed Covid-19 cases.

> Educational institutions with Covid-19 cases will be closed for disinfection and contact tracing. Students will be allowed to return home or stay in their hostels, based on the advice of the Health Ministry.

> Managing students, teachers and school staff who are Covid-19 positive:

Inform the nearest health district office (PKD) to receive instructions on what to do next.
Ensure the patient is constantly wearing a face mask.
Isolate the patient in a different room, and if possible, in one close to bathroom and ventilation facilities.
Ensure the teacher or individual who is in charge of the patient always wears a face mask, disposable gloves and aprons, keeps a minimum 1m distance from the patient and frequently washes their hands.
Monitor the patient’s movement.
Collaborate with PKD to investigate and identify the patient’s close contact. The patient and their close contact will be managed by PKD thereafter.
For daily school students, if the health district officer does not arrive (on time) or on PKD’s instructions, family members must be informed to receive them from school using their own vehicle. Only one person is allowed to come to pick the patient up and they must return home instantly. Inform PKD upon reaching home.
For boarding school students, patients will be isolated while waiting for the health district officer to arrive for further action.
If the school finds that the patient’s health is deteriorating, immediately call the nearest PKD or 999 for emergency.
If the patient is a school warden, staff or a family member who was advised to isolate at home, the school must ensure the patient continues to isolate at home and does not come to work.
Sanitise equipment the patient used, and their place, and get PKD’s advice on the need to disinfect the identified location.
Advise the patient to continuously update their health status on the MySejahtera app or on the Home Assessment Tool.

m. Patient’s food and drink must be arranged by the school based on the Health Ministry’s standard operating procedures.

> Managing students, teachers and school staff who are identified as close contacts of a Covid-19 positive case:

Inform the nearest PKD to receive instructions on what to do next.
Ensure the close contact is constantly wearing a face mask.
Isolate the close contact in a different room, and if possible, in one close to the bathroom and ventilation facilities.
Monitor the close contact’s movement.
Collaborate with PKD during the investigation.
Ensure the teacher or individual who is in charge of the close contact wears a face mask, disposable gloves and aprons, keeps a minimum 1m distance from the patient and frequently wash their hands.
Parents or guardians of daily school students who are identified as close contacts must pick their child up from school and return home.
For boarding school students, they will be isolated while waiting for the health district officer to arrive for further action. Close contacts must stay isolated in their room for at least 10 days or as advised by PKD.
If the close contact is a school warden, staff or a family member who was advised to isolate at home, the school must ensure they continue to isolate at home and do not come to work.
Sanitise equipment the close contact used, and their place, and get PKD’s advice on the need to disinfect the identified location.

> Managing students, teachers and school staff who are confirmed to have Covid-19 symptoms:

If schools have been informed that their student, teacher, warden and staff are showing symptoms such as fever, cough, cold, sore throat and shortness of breath while in school, schools must take the following steps:

Contact and get PKD’s advice for further action.
Isolate the affected person while they wait to receive treatment and give them face masks to be worn.
Inform the affected person’s family members.

> School hours can be implemented in stages after obtaining the approval of the state registrar to avoid congestion. Schools can follow the five models listed below to manage students’ movement:

Model 1 - waiting areas are within school grounds.
Model 2 - one way direction.
Model 3 - People’s Volunteer Corps (Rela), police, alumni, volunteers, community and parents help in controlling students’ movement
Model 4 - dispersing students in stages.
Model 5 - students wait in their classrooms (calling system).