© dpa
At the end of the Easter holidays on Monday, schools in Berlin are temporarily extending compulsory testing.
From the first day of school, students and employees have to test themselves every day for a week - instead of three times a week, according to a spokesperson for the education administration. Already before the start of the holidays on 11 April, students had been given coronatests to test themselves at home before classes on Monday. The change is considered a precautionary measure to be prepared in case of an increase in Corona infections during the holidays.
The aim is to prevent or limit contagions at school in this way. According to the spokesperson, there is an exception for the more than 15,000 high school graduates in Berlin: For them, the compulsory test does not apply because they are mostly out of school and usually sit in larger rooms. In addition, the minimum distance between the tables must be observed.
For many of the school-leavers, the final examinations will go into the next round from Monday. Then the written examinations for some foreign languages are on the schedule, the spokesperson said. The oral exams had already started at the beginning of April, and some of them have not yet been completed.
As last year, special regulations are being made for the Abitur in view of the pandemic, according to the information provided. For example, students have 30 minutes more time for the written tasks or an additional right to repeat if they have not passed the Abitur.
Before the Easter holidays, there had recently been fewer positive Corona tests at Berlin schools. According to the education administration, the percentage of positive tests in the first week of April (school days 4 to 8 April) was 0.22 per cent for pupils and 0.51 per cent for employees including teachers. Since 1 April, most Corona protection measures, such as the wearing of masks in many places, no longer apply in Berlin.