Minister Claude Meisch;

Following Wednesday's announcement of a 3-phase Lockdown Exit strategy for the Grady Duchy of Luxembourg, schools, etc., will see a phased return, as follows:

- Phase 1, Mon 20 April: re-opening of construction sites, gardening services, DIY centres, educational support services (not schools, creches), recycling centres; Mon 4 May: final year classes at secondary schools and universities;

- Phase 2, Mon 11 May: re-opening of secondary schools;

- Phase 3, Mon 25 May: re-opening of primary schools and creches.

Termed a "deconfinement strategy", more details were announced yesterday, Thursday 16 April 2020, by Luxembourg's Minister of National Education, Children and Youth, Claude Meisch, who explained the need to keep a balance between the imperatives of public health and the psycho-social, educational and economic aspects linked to the current confinement.

While classes at schools in Luxembourg will gradually resume from 4 May 2020, the operating mode will not be the one we experienced before 13 March; it will be adapted to the constraints of the health crisis.

The objective remains unchanged: to allow all students to continue their learning and to finish their school year to advance in their academic career. At the same time, maximum protection of the health of each child, young person and staff member remains a top priority, and efforts to limit the spread of COVID-19 and best protect the vulnerable population are maintained. To this end, the staggered reopening of schools and reception facilities will be accompanied by the implementation of strict barrier measures in all establishments.

To reconcile the objectives of school quality and maximum protection, the resumption of activities in the school and educational sector will be based on two principles:

1) Alternating education in two groups of students: "school" group and "repetition" group

To give all students a fair chance to progress in their education, teaching will focus on the essential and necessary content for the continuation of the programmes of the following school year.

In primary and secondary education, lessons will resume according to an alternating system which will ensure the continuity of teaching and learning while reducing by 50% the number of pupils simultaneously present in school buildings.

Teachers will teach the same course for two weeks in a row, while students will benefit from a week of lessons at school followed by a week of rehearsal work at home or in a reception structure.

Concretely, pupils of each class will be divided into two groups (A and B), the teaching of which will be organised alternately weekly. Each group will take the course at school for a week. During this week, new content will be introduced and teachers will be able to organise class assignments. The following week, the students will work at home (or benefit from supervision in primary education) to rehearse and consolidate the content thus learned according to a work plan given to them by their teacher(s).

2) A set of barrier measures for maximum protection

The reduction in the number of pupils will make it possible to respect social distancing measures as well as possible in school grounds as well as during school transport and to minimise the spread of the virus.

Distancing and hygiene measures will be put in place in each establishment to ensure maximum protection for all children, young people and staff. These include in particular:

- respect for an interpersonal distance of 2 metres (through the rearrangement of classrooms, the orientation of flows in the corridors, the phasing of recreation breaks, etc.);
- the compulsory wearing of a mask covering the nose and mouth for situations of interpersonal contact when the health safety distance of 2 metres cannot be guaranteed. The necessary equipment will be made available in sufficient quantity by the Ministry of National Education, Children and Youth;
- the compulsory wearing of such a device in public and on school transport (the wearing is strongly recommended for the entire school trip);
- in classrooms, where this distance can easily be respected thanks to the reduction in the number of students present, the wearing of such a device will not be compulsory, but optional;
- the maintenance of stable class groups, as far as possible, to avoid as much as possible that pupils not belonging to the same group rub shoulders;
- regular hand washing;
- the provision of disinfectants in each classroom and at the school entrance;
- the development of a student circulation plan within the buildings;
- the development of a plan of alternating breaks and recreation time;
- the abolition of physical education and swimming lessons.

4 May 2020: Resumption of final classes in secondary education and vocational training

- 1st year classes in both classical & general secondary education
- final classes of vocational training

In both classical and general secondary education, every effort will be made to enable pupils to close their final year and to obtain their diploma, which retains its full value, in due form. Such classes will resume on 4 May 2020 for all students and will continue until 8 May 2020. To guarantee social distance, the pupils of each class are divided into two groups, A and B. The school administrators will establish a timetable with a deferred timetable for each of the two groups.

For all pupils in 1st grades, the week of 11 May 2020 will be devoted to homework in the classroom, in strict compliance with the necessary social distancing and hygiene measures.

Taking into account the results of the school year will not be to the detriment of the students. Thus, at the student's request, an optional class assignment may be written in a maximum of three subjects during the week of 18 May 2020. The grade for the optional assignment will be taken into account in the calculation of the semester grade.

The secondary school leaving exams will start on 25 May 2020 and will run according to the schedule originally scheduled. To give each student a fair chance to pass their final year despite the exceptional circumstances, the examination questionnaires will focus exclusively on the subject covered in class before 13 March 2020.

Professional training: The final classes of CCP (certificates of professional competence), DAP (diploma of professional competence) and DT (diploma of technician) resume on 4 May 2020 according to a system of weekly alternation. The courses will continue until the dates of the respective final integrated projects (PIF) in the different courses. The duration of the final projects will be adapted and the projects will only relate to the material treated before the end of the 1st semester 2019-2020. The evaluation of projects will take into account the constraints linked to the current context.

11 May 2020: Resumption of other classes in secondary education and vocational training

- classes 7 to 2 of both classical & general secondary education

- non-terminal vocational training classes
- individual lessons in music education

Classes for 7th to 2nd years will resume according to a weekly alternating system, as above. This system (a week of school lessons followed by a week of home practice) will continue until the end of the school year. Before the Pentecost holiday, the content covered by distance education will be consolidated in the classroom. Class assignments will be organised in mathematics, languages ​​and in the specialisation disciplines of the upper classes. After the Pentecost holiday, pupils will learn new subjects and advance in the school curricula. Swimming lessons and sports lessons will be suspended until the end of the school year.

Professional training: The non-terminal classes of CCP (certificates of professional competence), DAP (diploma of professional competence) and DT (diploma of technician) will resume on 11 May 2020 according to a system of weekly alternation. In the sectors for which deconfinement has been decided, apprentices will be authorised to return to their apprenticeship station provided that their health security is guaranteed and that their practical training can be provided in good and due form by the training company.

Music Lessons: Individual lessons (1 student + 1 teacher) in music education, all branches combined, will resume on 11 May. Group lessons in music education, all branches combined, will be suspended until further notice. To allow all students to complete the school year in the best possible conditions, the programmes and the course of tests and examinations will be adapted for all branches of music education.

25 May 2020: Resumption of primary education classes and activities of reception structures

- cycles 1 to 4 of primary education

- reception structures and parental assistants

Primary education: Classes in the 4 cycles of basic education will resume on a weekly alternating system, as above. This system (a week of school lessons followed by a week of homework at home or in a reception structure) will be continued until the end of the school year. During the weeks devoted to homework, students will be able, depending on the parents' choice, to work either at home or in a reception structure. In each municipality, the dual system will be organised by the director of primary education in collaboration with the municipal authorities, the school committee and the provider of the reception structure. Swimming lessons and sports lessons will be suspended until the end of the school year.

Reception structures and parental assistants: Nurseries, relay houses, children's homes and parental assistants will resume their normal mode of operation on 25 May 2020.