Overseas journalists impressed by Chinese students' return to school
Overseas journalists observe how students make pottery work at a school in Shanghai.
Chinese students’ return to school has made headlines around the world as other countries are preparing to relax their COVID-19 lockdowns.
Forty-nine journalists from 24 media outlets visited two local schools on Thursday to see what they were doing to ensure students’ safety after their lengthy break.
A Reuters report said: “China’s gradual return to school will be closely watched across the world as parents struggle with taking on the role of teacher for home schooling, but are nervous about the risk of a new wave of infection.”
Reuters reporters who visited Shanghai High School found strict protective measures in place, including temperature checks, compulsory face masks and scrupulous hygiene, to guard students “thrilled to be there” after three months of absence.
A Reuters report on Shanghai students returning to class after their long break
Foreign journalists visit the school clinic at Shanghai High School.
A Shanghai High School student is interviewed by foreign journalists.
An AFP story described China’s measures as “schools in coronavirus-hit countries worldwide ponder how the pandemic will alter campus life.”
It gave specific details about measures taken at the Shanghai High School, such as the footprint decals on the ground for social distancing and partitions on tables to separate students during lunch.
Its report said students at the school were confident about getting through the hard times.
Feng Zhigang, the school principal, told the reporters that the return to school was not only good for students’ studies but also for their physical and mental health.
Reporters from Japanese media visited Zhongshan School Affiliated to Shanghai Huangpu Institute of Education and reported on its measures, such as the disinfection of classrooms three times a day and daily supplies of masks.
Two of its Japanese students and their parents stuck in Japan were excited to see the school on TV and recorded a video clip to send to a teacher. Interestingly, their family name of Nakayama is Zhongshan when translated into Chinese.
According to the Shanghai Education Commission, a Japanese TV station had asked them for help to carry out an in-depth observation of local schools as they found their measures could be good references for Japanese schools.
One foreign reporter said her child is studying at a school in Shanghai. As schools ban parents from entering to reduce the risk of cross infection, she had no idea about the situation in her child’s school. But she said the measures she saw during her time at Shanghai High School reassured her about the safety of her child.
A Japanese newspaper carries a report on Shanghai students' return to school.
A cameraman takes a close look at the footprint decals on the ground for social distancing at a local school.
A thermometer, a bottle of hand sanitizer and a pollutant disposal package are put in front of a classroom.
