Cambodia will keep its schools closed due to the coronavirus outbreak for the time being despite a significant number of students in rural areas being unable to access e-learning services, Cambodian media reported on Thursday, citing the country's Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport
BANGKOK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th May, 2020) Cambodia will keep its schools closed due to the coronavirus outbreak for the time being despite a significant number of students in rural areas being unable to access e-learning services, Cambodian media reported on Thursday, citing the country's Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport.
According to Phnom Penh Post, the ministry has refused the request of the Cambodian Independent Teachers' Association for a partial reopening, upholding its earlier decision to continue providing public education services online and via television broadcast.
The teachers' association has reportedly argued in the petition that e-learning and distant learning services were only accessible for students from rich families, but not for poor students, especially in rural areas. Meanwhile, the number of such underprivileged students in Cambodia is more than 2 million, some of them not even owning smartphones or TVs to access the learning programs, according to the report.
The newspaper has quoted the Education Ministry's spokesperson, Ros Soveacha, as confirming that distant learning programs will be continued in Cambodia for the time being as they have met large support among students and parents. He reportedly refrained from providing statistics on how many Cambodian households had technical means for accessing these services.
Schools in Cambodia were initially ordered to close and move lessons online on March 14. Later in April, the Education Ministry and the Ministry of Information signed a memorandum allowing classes to be broadcast via television, on a newly established channel TVK2.
As of Thursday, there have been 122 confirmed coronavirus infection cases in Cambodia with no related fatalities.
