• Students with Covid-19, or who are on quarantine order or stay-home notice are not allowed to sit for the exams
• Students on medical leave due to acute respiratory infection and those on leave of absence because they stay with others on home quarantine order are allowed to, if they do not have the virus
• Candidates will be seated 1.5m apart, with a maximum of 30 students in each classroom for the exams  

SINGAPORE — Students who test positive for Covid-19, or who are on a quarantine order or stay-home notice will not be allowed to sit for the national written examinations at the end of this year.

But students who are on medical leave due to acute respiratory infection may do so, if they test negative for Covid-19.

These were some of the new arrangements spelled out by the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Singapore Examinations and Assessment Board (SEAB) on Friday (Aug 21) to ensure the safety of students sitting for the year-end national exams amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The national exams will begin from Sept 14 onwards.

About 120,000 students are slated to sit for the exams, which include the Primary School Leaving Examination and the GCE N-Level, O-Level and A-Level examinations.

Here is a closer look at the arrangements:

WHO WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO SIT FOR THE EXAMS? 

Students who test positive for Covid-19, or have been placed on quarantine order or stay-home notice will not be allowed to sit for the examinations.

Candidates who are on leave of absence due to close contact with a Covid-19 confirmed case will also not be allowed to do so.

However, exceptions can be made on a case-by-case basis for candidates on stay-home notice if they have travelled out of Singapore for compassionate reasons, such as to attend a funeral or visit a critically-ill family member.

WHAT HAPPENS IF STUDENTS CANNOT SIT FOR AN EXAM?

Students who are unable to sit for the exams due to reasons related to Covid-19 can apply for special consideration.

This means that grades will be awarded to students based on evidence such as their performance in other papers of the affected subject in school-based and national examinations.

For example, if a student has completed Paper 1 of his O-Level Mathematics examination but not Paper 2 of the exam due to virus-related reasons, SEAB will look at the student’s rank position in the entire cohort and use that to derive the student’s marks for Paper 2.

WHO CAN SIT FOR THE EXAMS?

Students who are on medical leave due to acute respiratory infection, as well as students who are on leave of absence because they stay in the same household as those on home quarantine order are allowed to sit for the exams.

But they must first test negative for Covid-19.

Such students should visit a general practitioner participating in the Swab-and-Send-Home initiative or a polyclinic. If they are diagnosed to have acute respiratory infection, they will have to test for Covid-19. The cost of the swab test will be borne by the Government.

Candidates placed on approved absence because they stay in a household with adults who exhibit flu-like symptoms will also be allowed to sit for the examinations. They are not required to get tested for the virus.

WHAT WILL EXAM HALLS LOOK LIKE THIS YEAR?

Schools and examination venues will implement temperature-taking. Students will also be visually screened for flu-like symptoms.  

Students must don a face mask when reporting to and leaving the examination venue but may wear a face shield at their desks.

They will also sit 1.5m apart from one another, with a maximum of 30 students in each classroom. 

Candidates who are on medical leave due to acute respiratory infection, or who are on leave of absence because they stay with individuals on home quarantine order will take their examinations in a separate room from other candidates.

They will be seated at least 3m apart with a cap of 10 candidates in each examination room.

Candidates on stay-home notice because they had travelled out of the country for compassionate reasons will take their exams in a centralised venue managed by SEAB.

MOE has also encouraged schools to implement a study break prior to the national examinations to minimise the risk of a large number of students being quarantined or put on leave of absence due to Covid-19 cases which may occur in schools.