Many Singaporeans were overjoyed when PM Lee announced that masks will no longer be mandatory outdoors from next Tuesday (29 Mar).
The easing of mask restrictions will also be convenient and beneficial for students in school.
On Thursday (24 Mar), the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) announced that selected teachers and students will be offered the flexibility to remove their masks during language and literacy lessons.
The ‘mask-off’ approach will provide students with visual and verbal cues, allowing them to better acquire and develop language skills.
On Thursday (24 Mar), Education Minister Chan Chun Sing penned a Facebook post explaining the challenges teachers face when teaching languages while wearing a mask.
Even though masks help lower the transmission risk of Covid-19, they can also hinder students’ learning process, especially when pronouncing complex words.
That’s because teachers are unable to use visual and verbal cues when they have their masks on.
The problem is worse when students learn languages they are less familiar with.
Therefore, removing masks in the classroom will allow students to use visual and auditory senses to master languages more effectively.
MOE shared that the mask-off rollout will occur in phases starting next Tuesday (29 Mar).
In the 1st phase, small groups of students in MOE Kindergartens, mainstream primary schools, and Special Education schools may remove their masks at “appropriate times” during language and literacy classes.
Phase 1 will also apply to mainstream primary school students who are part of the Learning Support Programme, Mother Tongue Support Programme, and Reading Remediation Programme.
The rollout will be expanded to cover all language teachers of all schools in Primary 1 and Primary 2 levels.
However, teachers and students must continue adhering to safe management measures (SMMs) and practise good personal hygiene.
Wearing a mask can be inconvenient at times, but for some teachers, it significantly hinders their teaching.
With SMMs still in place, we hope the mask-off rollout will enable students to learn effectively while keeping them safe from Covid-19.
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Featured image adapted from Chan Chun Sing on Facebook.
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