Students who resume in-person extracurricular activities on Monday must present a negative swab test result and a boarding pass to their teacher when returning from abroad, according to new rules.
Staff at a school running extracurricular activities would need to present these documents to the head of school.
Published by the health authorities ahead of next week’s reopening, the rules outline a series of measures that must be followed by those involved in extracurricular activities.
These activities include private lessons, catechism classes as well as music, art, drama, dance and other visual and performing arts.
Although the majority of the measures were in place before the closures ordered in March, educators who spoke to Times of Malta said the requirement for students and staff to present documentation related to their travels was new.
The document states: “Anyone travelling overseas should present a negative PCR/RAT test result before their return to school if returning from an amber list country.”
Those travelling to red zones are required to quarantine on their return so they would not be able to attend extracurricular activities during this period.
At the moment, all countries are either on the amber list or in a red zone.
“Students/staff are requested to present copies of their boarding flight pass or boat ticket,” the document reads.
The rules are among a series of “obligatory conditions” issued under the public health act.
No reference to the vaccine certificate, set to be made available in the coming weeks, is made in the document.
The government last week published a legal notice regulating vaccine certificates for travel to countries outside the euro economic zone, paving the way for the country to introduce the COVID document.
Health Minister Chris Fearne announced on Saturday that it should be available by the end of May.
Although children are not eligible for the vaccine, educators were among the first cohort to be given the jab as part of the government’s efforts to minimise the disruption to schooling.
An arts school owner told Times of Malta the new rule means more work for the staff, especially since the measure was not in place before the closures and announced only days before reopening.
Another teacher pointed out that it might prove difficult to keep track of students’ travels, especially in summer when a lot of people went abroad.
Some students only attend extracurricular activities once a week, the dance teacher said, making it even harder for educators to know their whereabouts.
All extracurricular activities were halted in mid-March when the number of new COVID cases reached all-time highs.