THE winter holiday for primary and middle schools in Shenzhen will begin Jan. 16, while high schools will begin Jan. 23, the Shenzhen Municipal Education Bureau announced in a notice.

Students and teaching and administrative staff who will leave Guangdong Province during the winter holiday are required to take nucleic acid tests within 48 hours after returning to the city.

They are not allowed to go to medium- or high-risk areas for COVID-19 and are urged not to go to potential COVID-19 infection risk zones, according to the notice.

Winter holiday at primary and middle schools will end Feb. 12, while secondary vocational schools will have their winter holiday from Jan. 24 to Feb. 19.

Kindergartens can arrange their holiday period upon their discretion. Spring term will start Feb. 14 for kindergartens and primary and middle schools, while vocational schools start Feb. 21, according to the notice.

The notice also requires reasonable holiday homework load and urges parents not to send their children to academic training programs and be cautious when choosing nonacademic training programs.

The notice states that parents are advised not to pay for any learning package covering over three months or exceeding 60 classes.  

(Wang Jingli)