A couple of weeks ago, Egypt’s Minister of Education, Tarek Shawki, announced that the government has postponed Thanaweya Amma secondary school final year exams until the 21st of June. With a global pandemic occurring, putting these students at risk is a huge responsibility, especially with the coronavirus cases in Egypt skyrocketing.
While the government has stated it has taken the precautions they deem fit to ensure the safety of a total of 653,000 students and 186,000 proctors, many people are finding the decision to continue with these exams unfit and unreasonable given the current situation.

Via: Egypt Today – Thanaweya Amma students
One of those people questioning the Minister’s decision is TV presenter, Radwa El Sherbiny. On her social media, the popular celebrity directs a message to the Minister of Education asking him about the precautions taken to guarantee the safety of over half a million students. These students who are in dire need of this certification will have to put their lives at risk to be able to graduate which seems unfair and unreasonable with all that’s going on.
El Sherbiny also points out that many of these students have been facing the loss of a loved one due to coronavirus and have been struggling mentally and emotionally with the lockdown and quarantine for the past 2-3 months. How can we expect students to get the results that will determine the path they choose for the rest of their lives when their emotional well-being has been completely unstable?
With many students and parents in fear of their safety and the precautions that the government is taking to ensure their protection from Covid-19, El Sherbiny asks the minister to show the public how safe the exam halls are by personally visiting them.
According to the minister, students will be divided amongst 56,000 exam centers. Each center will hold only 14 students to keep enough distance between them. Shawki added that the students will have their temperatures measured before entering the exam hall and also be required to sterilize their hands. The question is, since coronavirus symptoms do not show instantly and sometimes do not show at all, is it really worth risking the health of so many students as well as their families?
With all the other foreign high school certification being canceled due to the global pandemic occurring, should Thanaweya Amma exams be canceled or at least postponed?
Further reading: Video: Minister of Social Solidarity Expects Nurseries to Operate Within 2 Weeks.
Comment With Facebook