Yoo Eun-hye: "73% Attendance, Will Gradually Expand... Goal of Full Attendance in 2nd Semester"

Deputy Prime Minister Yoo Eun-hye Holds Advisory Meeting with Infectious Disease Experts
Discusses Mobile Specimen Teams and Rapid PCR Test Results

On the 17th, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Yoo Eun-hye held a meeting with infectious disease experts at The-K Korean Teachers' Credit Union in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul.

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education Yoo Eun-hye held a consultation meeting with infectious disease experts on the 17th to review preparations for school quarantine measures, aiming to expand full in-person attendance in the second semester.

On the 17th, Deputy Prime Minister Yoo discussed quarantine conditions and supplementary measures for expanding in-person attendance with experts at The-K Korea Teachers' Credit Union in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. They reviewed confirmed cases within schools since the resumption of in-person classes and analyzed results from mobile specimen collection teams and rapid PCR tests.

Deputy Prime Minister Yoo stated, "As of the 13th, 4.35 million students, accounting for 73.4% nationwide, have attended face-to-face classes," adding, "We plan to maintain the current rate of in-person attendance while gradually increasing it, with the goal of full attendance for all students in the second semester."

She explained, "As of the first week of May, countries conducting full in-person attendance include Singapore, the United Kingdom, and China, while most major advanced countries are combining in-person and remote classes. Among these countries, the in-person attendance rates are 73% in South Korea, 70% in Germany, and varying rates by school level in France, the United States, and Japan."

Deputy Prime Minister Yoo emphasized, "Normalizing in-person classes and school operations is a core part of educational recovery, ensuring equal opportunities for our students to recover," but also noted, "This cannot be rushed, and expanding in-person attendance for all students requires thorough school quarantine and various prerequisite conditions to be met."

She added, "To this end, we will gather consensus through consultations with education offices, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, experts, and school sites regarding necessary environmental analysis, judgments, and the conditions and processes for full in-person attendance."

Attending the consultation meeting were Professor Choi Eun-hwa of Seoul National University Pediatrics, Professor Lee Jae-gap of Hallym University Infectious Diseases, Professor Choi Jae-wook of Korea University Preventive Medicine, and Professor Jung Jae-hoon of Gachon University Preventive Medicine.