RO Govt. ponders keeping schools closed until end of year

Romania's Government published emergency ordinance OUG 192 that provides the possibility of suspending face to face teaching in local schools until December 31, by order of the education minister.

The move smoothens the extension of the one-month suspension of the activity in schools that should take place around the general elections, G4media.ro.

In the note explaining the reasoning for the normative act, the Government motivates the urgency by the fact that not taking the decision "can generate major dysfunctions with negative effects on the good development of the activities in the national education system and the students."

The Education Ministry already announced that the mid-term exams would be waived and replaced with something new defined as "summative evaluations."

Both suspending face-to-face teaching and waiving the mid-term exams prompted criticism and even actions in court - such as in Cluj county, where the decisions were referred to the court.

The topic can become relevant for the electoral campaign as an illustration of the Government's weak crisis management.

(Photo: Sabin Cirstoveanu/ Inquam Photos)