A fourth-grader of Hà Nội studies online at home. — VNS Photo

 HÀ NỘI — Students from the first to sixth grades in the 18 suburban districts and town of Hà Nội return to online learning from February 28 as part of local efforts to curb COVID-19.

The Hà Nội People’s Committee made the decision on February 27 based on the Department of Education and Training proposal.

The move was prompted by a surge in the rising number of new infections in the community, including in schools, the fact that students of these grades are yet to be vaccinated against COVID-19, and parental concerns.

The municipal People’s Committee also assigned the district-level administrations to base decisions on the COVID-19 situation in their localities and for proposals by local educational establishments to flexibly switch between in-person and online learning to ensure the safety of students and teachers.

Students from the first to sixth grades in the 18 suburban districts and town of Hà Nội resumed in-person learning on February 10. Meanwhile, schools remain shut for those in urban districts. 

The capital is expected to see the peak of the current COVID-19 surge in the middle of March, according to Chairman of the Hà Nội People’s Committee Chu Ngọc Anh.

The situation is complicated in Hà Nội as more than 10,000 new patients have been reported daily, and 76 communes and wards (12.8 per cent of the total) have had their risk levels raised to Level 3 (high risk).

However, 96 per cent of the patients are mild cases that express no symptoms, and 95 per cent are being treated at home. — VNS