New school year slated to start on Sept 1

As secondary school pupils prepare to return to class on Monday, a week after senior high students, authorities are planning to bring forward the launch of the next academic year, to September 1, in a bid to help schools make up for lessons lost during the pandemic. 

Last week attendance was low when schools opened for senior high pupils, with many opting to continue studying for next month’s university entrance exams from home.

Next week, attendance at schools will again be subject to strict attendance guidelines, with pupils instructed to maintain a distance of at least 1.5 meters from others and not to share books and stationery. 

As for the new academic year, Deputy Education Minister Sofia Zacharaki has called on pupils to keep their text books as they will be required to catch up on material that was not covered this year due to school closures.

Zacharaki sent out a circular to the heads of the country’s secondary schools, asking them to instruct their pupils accordingly. 

The Education Ministry has already received confirmation from the Institute of Educational Policy of the material that pupils will need to have studied in order to proceed to the following grade, Kathimerini understands. 

It appears that there is no need for additional teachers to be hired, with more than 30,000 auxiliary staff having been recruited during the current academic year. 

Meanwhile, the outlook for primary school pupils remains unclear. The government had initially indicated that a June 1 opening could be possible but the likelihood is that they will not reopen this year, sources say.