Special education students to return to school after Passover

Approximately 52,000 special education students will return to study in small groups, according to clear and precise guidelines from the Health Ministry.

By ALEX WINSTON
An empty school is seen after Israel shut schools as part of precautionary measures against coronavirus, in Tel Aviv, Israel March 15, 2020 (photo credit: CORINNA KERN/REUTERS)
An empty school is seen after Israel shut schools as part of precautionary measures against coronavirus, in Tel Aviv, Israel March 15, 2020
(photo credit: CORINNA KERN/REUTERS)
After the upcoming Passover holiday, 2,400 special education kindergartens and another 426 schools will reopen to students after closure due to coronavirus, Aryeh Moore, deputy director of the Education Ministry's security division, announced Tuesday morning.
Approximately 52,000 special education students will return to study in small groups, according to clear and precise guidelines from the Health Ministry.
The announcement was made to a special committee dealing with preparations for the next school year in special education, led by MK Nitzan Horowitz (Meretz).
Shmuel Abouab, director-general of the Education Ministry stated on Tuesday that the return to education will be done in a first phase of four-hour shifts, three times per week, with an intended full return for all students to be evaluated in the coming days.
Schools and universities in Israel have been closed since early March, when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu initiated procedures to prevent the spread of coronavirus, although at the time preschools and special education institutes were not closed.
The Education Ministry also announced last week that matriculation exams taken by high school students, known in Hebrew as the "bagrut," will take place in an emergency format due to the pandemic.