PHNOM PENH: Following an order from Prime Minister Hun Sen to allow positive Covid-19 students to take High School exam, the Ministry of Education has announced on Monday that a special handling of the examination papers is being implemented for those students found positive of the virus.
Minister of Education Hang Chuon Naron has made the announcement at the opening of the examination at Preah Sisowath High School on Monday. He has confirmed that the two examinees who tested positive for Covid-19 with one diagnosed with “Omicron” is being treated at the National Center for Tuberculosis and Leprosy control. They are allowed to take the examination like any other student but they are taking it at the hospital. The Minister has added that after the exam, the examination papers of the two students will be sent to a special room with a professor to check.
He says, “All the teachers will wear gloves to hold it and put the exam paper in a rubber plastic until the exam is finish. They will make a special adjustment by taking those exam paper into the anti-bacterial machine and then give to the assigned teachers to correct it more carefully than other normal exam papers, meaning the teacher must wear gloves, face mask or PPE suit if needed to protect the safety of the teachers.”
This morning, on the Facebook page of the Ministry of Education, two female students who were being treated for Covid-19 at the National Center for Tuberculosis and Leprosy control were sitting in an examination room in a special room designed to protect both students and invigilator. The two female students were sent by the government for a karate competition in Kazakhstan and just returned to Cambodia and were found positive Covid-19.
He has added, “Overall, in this job as we already know this year is a special year. So, we do not know yet how is the exam going. But even though there are student examinees with Covid-19, we will make an effort not to be careless but overall, I understand that the spread of the infection is not infected by the exam paper. It spreads from person to person. So, wearing face mask is really important if we talking about how it will spread and the face mask is important in the exam processing because people need to be careful. All these rules are to prevent the spread.”
On Sunday evening, at a handover ceremony receiving the vaccine from Australia, Prime Minister Hun Sen said that students with Covid-19 can take the exam like normal students, but the only condition is to be tested at their hospital with controller and health officials checking on the spot. The high school exam for the academic year 2020-2021 takes place from 27 to 28 December with more than 114 candidates. The results of the exam will be announced on 18 and 19 January next year.
