During a joint visit with Vice President Ma’ruf Amin to SMA 19 Balaraja state senior high school in Tangerang, Banten, Nadiem said that teachers must ensure the health and safety of faculty and students from the moment they leave their homes to coming home from school.

If a positive case is detected at a school, the limited face-to-face learning will be immediately stopped. The school then must coordinate with the local COVID-19 task force to disinfect the premises and start the test, trace and care procedure for infected individuals.

“Limited face-to-face learning can begin again once the situation has been controlled,” he said, adding that all parties involved would require awareness and mutual cooperation to ensure Indonesian children could receive a high quality learning experience.

Meanwhile, the Vice President said that the limited face-to-face-learning was essential due to the challenges of online learning.

“According to the information we have received, online learning is not optimal, especially in locations where internet connectivity is low. It’s no longer online learning, they simply cannot learn,” Ma’ruf said.

To rectify these issues, he continued, the government has been pushing for a return to face-to-face learning in a number of regions by accelerating and prioritizing the vaccination of students and educators alike.

Also in attendance were National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) head Ganip Warsito, Banten Deputy Governor Andika Hazrumy and Tangerang Regent Zaki Iskandar.

After reviewing the limited face-to-face learning at SMA 19 Balaraja, the Vice President and his entourage continued their journey to visit the vaccination program at Pondok Pesantren An Nawawi Tanara in Serang, Banten.

The vaccination program is split into three sections in three different locations; male santri (students of Islamic boarding schools), female santri and the general public.

During a media teleconference at the vaccination site, Nadiem asserted that vaccination is not a criteria for limited face-to-face learning, but schools whose faculty members have received their second doses must provide an option for limited face-to-face learning.

“This has been the basis for the government’s policy that vaccination is not a criteria, but schools are required to implement limited face-to-face learning if their faculty have received their second dose. To reiterate, vaccinations will result in face-to-face learning, not the other way around,” he said.

Meanwhile, Banten Education and Culture Agency head Tabrani said that the agency had invited school principals to discuss the return to face-to-face learning after the issuance of Home Ministerial Instruction 35/2021 on implementing limited face-to-face learning in schools located in areas under levels 1 to 3 of the public activity restrictions (PPKM). Banten has started implementing limited face-to-face learning since Sept. 6, with nearly every teacher and educator in the province vaccinated twice, with the exception of those deemed not yet eligible by healthcare professionals.

“As long as the school has satisfied the requirements, we invite them to start implementing limited face-to-face learning with strict health protocols,” he said.

As of Sept. 16, approximately 57 percent of students aged 12 to 17 have been vaccinated, with a target of 65 percent by the end of the month.

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