Capital's online spring term announced

Beijing municipal education authorities on Monday released a statement that the city's middle and primary schools will begin online lessons of the spring semester on April 13.

Students will receive new textbooks before April 13 and for those who are not in the city, teachers will guide them to download the e-books.

The course resources provided by Beijing educational departments will be available on the city's television channels, as well as online platforms.

Education authorities require each lesson be completed within 25 minutes and 35 minutes for primary schools and middle school students, respectively.

Primary schools should not assign homework to students in grades one and two, the statement said.

Education authorities also emphasized that all the schools should pay attention to guide students to ensure physical exercise and adequate sleep.

"Residents should continue to put epidemic prevention and control as the top priority, with the capital facing new challenges of imported cases," Pang Xinghuo, deputy director of the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention said at a news conference on Monday.

She reminded residents to insist on good habits, including keeping a safe distance of at least 1 meter in public places, maintaining good hygiene habits and using public chopsticks and spoons for dinner.

Pang also advised people to avoid nonessential travel due to surging coronavirus infections.

"After making telephone or online appointments, residents can receive vaccine service in 441 outpatient departments in the city," Gao Xiaojun, spokesman for the Beijing Municipal Health Commission, said at the conference.

Medical workers should plan their schedules well, avoiding gatherings, and people in outpatient departments are all required to wear masks and keep safe distances.