Countdown to the 2nd batch of students returning

From the Master Julian Jeffrey

We have been parted too long from one another, and the return of so many more of our pupils on Monday 18th May will come as a great relief to all our community. Pupils and staff have worked tirelessly on the eLearning lessons and activities, now teachers can eventually interact with pupils face to face. Utilising similarly careful preparations as we deployed for the last round of school opening in April, we have sought to take much of the potential anxiety out of the day. Pupils will find a scrupulously clean school and a meticulously planned series of measures in place to help them navigate the school day. I am sure that, once the safety precautions are familiar, pupils will once again feel that all’s right with the world at large. Of course, I recognise that for our youngest pupils and those outside Tianjin, online learning is still very much an everyday experience. Staff have worked very hard to make the sessions – both live and recorded – as interactive and engaging as possible, so pupils and parents can be confident that academic progress has not been held back by the online experience. I am confident that, with another safe and successful reopening next week, the day for the final wave of returnees cannot be far off. Wellington College has remained a strong and resilient community over the past three months, working together for the ongoing education of our pupils, even under the sort of unremitting pressure that would cause many school communities to fracture. This speaks volumes for the spirit and the commitment we share, and I remain hugely grateful for the support of pupils, parents and staff in responding so positively.   Julian Jeffrey MASTER

Click here to watch the video of our preparations in action

To keep our pupils safe and healthy, the school is well prepared as always.  

All you need to know before the school reopens

1

What requirements do the pupils have to meet to enter the campus?

• All the pupils must provide the Green Code to exchange for their “I am Fine” card.
• Anyone who enters the campus must wear a mask and, as long as they can demonstrate they have a normal temperature, they may enter the campus after cleaning their hands.
• Pupils cannot have had any close contact with a suspected/confirmed COVID-19 case in the last 14 days.
• They do not have any of the symptoms listed below.

·         Temperature≥37.3℃ ·         Dry cough ·         Sore throat ·         Stuffy/Running nose ·         Shortness of breath

·         Fatigue ·         Headache ·         Vomiting ·         Diarrhoea

2

How do pupils take the school bus?

• Pupils must provide the Green Code to the bus monitor to take the school bus.
• Pupils who take the school bus must wear a mask at all times and keep a seat empty between each other.
• All school buses will be cleaned, disinfected and ventilated thoroughly twice every day after the pupils disembark.
• After school, all pupils are required to take the school bus from the East Gate. All pupils must have their temperatures taken again before they board the bus.
• To keep social distance between pupils on the School Bus, we will make sure that no more than 50% of the seats will be taken. We have changed some School Buses routes and will contact the parents to let them know. Please make sure that you know when your School Bus will be departing and the bus monitor’s contact information.

 

3

What do parents have to pay attention to when bringing pupils to school?

 In the morning

• Pupils from Year 4-6 and those who take the School Bus must enter the campus from the East Gate by themselves. Parents cannot enter the campus.

• Pupils from Senior School who don’t take the School Bus must enter the campus from the North Gate by themselves. Parents cannot enter the campus.
• The garage will be closed. Yide Road from Nanyunhenan Road to North Gate will be temporarily closed.
• Parents can park along Nanyunhenan Road. The College will cooperate with the police to help with the traffic flow.

 After school 

Junior School

 (Year 4-6)

• Parents can enter the sports’ field with the parent badge. Parents then follow the signage to their child’s assigned year group waiting area in order to pick up their child. All parents and pupils must leave the campus from North Gate.

• Parents must provide their Green Code before entering the campus. They can then scan and complete the visitor’s questionnaire and, as long as they can demonstrate they have a normal temperature, they may enter the campus after cleaning their hands.
• Parents should leave the campus from the designated gate as soon as possible after picking up the children.

* Parents are not allowed to enter the campus without the parent badge or if they have missed the time of pick up for their child. A designated teacher will wait with the pupil in the Junior School Dining Hall. After contacting the security guard, the teacher will bring the pupil to the security house where the parents can pick up the pupil. Thank you for your cooperation!

Senior School

• All Senior School pupils will leave the campus from East or North Gate by themselves.

 

4

How can the school ensure the safety of students during the school day?

Keeping a strict track of all staff and long-term vendors In addition to the strict management of entering and exiting the campus, the school conducted a 14-day epidemiological investigation of all staff, long-term vendors and pupils. We collect temperature information from those who are at home every day. For those who are already in school, we have their temperatures taken twice a day so that we have everybody’s health information in time. Supervision and guidance To make sure all of our prevention measures and rules will be carried out completely, whole school staff and pupils have received video training sessions. In addition to that, the staff have completed training before the school reopening. The academic and non-academic staff will work closely together to supervise and guide pupils to keep them safe secure and healthy while on campus. Regular ventilation and strict disinfection The class teacher is responsible for the daily disinfection of all computer equipment and regular window ventilation of the classroom 3 times per day. The disinfection of the facilities and furniture will be completed by the property management company. All disinfection supplies are arranged in accordance with the property management company standards. When the outside air quality is normal, the windows will be open throughout the day with a minimum ventilation of 3 times per day. Parents can provide more clothes for their child while in class if needed. When the outside air quality is poor, we will turn on the air conditioning filter to ensure that the indoor pm 2.5 index is at a normal level. The air conditioning in each classroom can be turned on, as it is not a VRV centralised air conditioning system which means there is no chance of cross infection due to air circulation. The school has renewed all the air conditioning filters. Lunch in batches to reduce overcrowding

Junior School

 (Year 4-6)

The lunch and snacks for each class will be in the classroom. The class teacher will supervise the hand washing routine for the class before and after the meals. The school lunch will be prepared with an Asian food set or a western food set. The Junior School pupils need to select their food choice one week in advance. Lunch will be delivered to each class by the catering company in an environmentally friendly disposable lunch box.  

Senior School

Senior School pupils and staff will be allowed to eat at the two dining halls in the main building, although in scheduled batches. The dining room will be converted into a one-way system. All diners are required to prepare their own lunch boxes. Senior School pupils can select food from the canteen at lunchtime. All cold meals, the salad bar, sandwiches and the noodle bar have been suspended in accordance with government regulations regarding school catering.

In addition, the school has suspended the opening of the swimming pool, gym, theatre, lifts and libraries (there is a lending service only) in order to reduce overcrowding. The interior fresh air system has been suspended temporarily. Responding to problems immediately When entering the school, if the temperature test is above 37.2, a child will enter the temperature re-test area. After the re-test, if the pupil is still above this temperature limit, the school will notify the parents and arrange for the child to wait in the school's newly established isolation room. The school doctor will carry out a corresponding emergency treatment check according to the requirements of the CDC. When taking the school bus, if the temperature test fails, the school bus administrator will notify the parents to take the student back directly and report to the school medical department for follow-up tracking.  

5

Does the school have special arrangements for boarders?

Boarders have a housemaster who is in charge of their management. Temperature checks and reports are done 3 times a day with one single room per boarder to reduce the concentration. The school’s catering company will provide 3 meals a day, using the environmentally friendly disposable boxes for meals.