Coronavirus and Schools in Hong Kong

The coronavirus has been around since the beginning of the year and has seriously affected schools in Hong Kong. The education economy has taken a huge hit and it has now become a serious matter for those all involved. Since January 2020, the coronavirus has become more serious across the world and is halting countries in their daily operations.

The Damages in Schools

The coronavirus has damaged Hong Kong’s education industry. Because of it, the Education Bureau (EDB) has suspended class operations until the 20th of April. The suspension has been extended twice now, with it originally ending in the 2nd of March. What is the damage?

Hong Kong teachers have found the situation very challenging. Those who have been working in tuition centres are in serious trouble as they have probably been affected the most. My friends who work in the biggest tuition centres have been on no paid leave for the last month and it may continue depending on how business resumes after Spring.

For schools it is a bit different. My knowledge does not extend to local schools but I assume they were able to cope as they are funded by the government. For international schools who require those to pay tuition fees have had difficulty with the reaction of parents. Even with the suspension, they are still required to pay the tuition fee to keep their child enrolled in that school. Schools have offered discount, but it is still an extraordinary amount for a service that has been halted. Some parents have taken their kid out of the school for this very reason.

Teachers have been dismissed because of the situation regarding tuition fees and the length of the suspension. There is not enough income for the school to be pay all their staff. They are heavily reliant on the private tuition fees to continue their operations. I have seen many part time staff lose their jobs over this, and it is not their fault. Some teachers don’t even get full pay, they only get a fraction or no paid leave. It is not a healthy situation for many teachers.

Recovery

How can the education industry recover from this? Well first of all, they need to uplift the suspension! In my opinion, at the time of writing this article, the coronavirus in Hong Kong is NOT serious. We have contained it well, with the number of infected cases only being at the hundred mark. Other countries have seen rapid developments that are in the thousands. We are next door to China and our containment has been amazing considering the links we have with mainland.

Schools need to show more backing and support to the teachers. I don’t know their financial figures, however they need to show more willingness to support their teachers during this tough time. Not saying all schools are like this! But there are certainly some that need to do more.

Parents need to start supporting the industry once again. Leaving your kids inside and relying on online lessons will not suffice. You cannot replicate the traditional classroom setting in a virtual form. There are too many complications and restrictions. If they continue staying inside, they will start to develop certain anxieties and their social development will be affected. That saying, the older students I have seen (high school) are out playing basketball and going to places to eat together. Makes the suspension a bit redundant if you ask me!

My article on doing online lessons using ZOOM: http://www.mrgregenglish.com/using-zoom-for-online-lessons/

Final Thoughts

I wish all the teachers well in this predicament. I have struggled but managed to get by with the support of family and friends. Hopefully we can pull through this together. The coronavirus will slowly ease out and schools in Hong Kong and across the world will gradually get back to normal.

For more information about the suspension: https://www.edb.gov.hk/en/

For more blogs: http://www.mrgregenglish.com/blog/