Since early April, we have been running this update on how education systems in the EU Europe region are responding to the Covid-19 pandemic. We focus on how different countries are dealing with the challenges that the virus has placed on schools and universities, including how they are managing school leavers' and university entry examinations, and the different country contexts across Europe. For more information, updates, webinars and other engagement opportunities, please see ‘Europe and education: Stay connected during Covid-19’.

We focus on ten priority countries: Bulgaria, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Ireland, Poland, Romania and Spain. This week: France, Germany, Greece, Italy and Spain.

• France: Country-specific entry regulations for students and researchers; French finance ministry announces €2.3 billion student support package.
• Germany: Schools return to face-to-face learning after summer.
• Greece: Concern from students and parents about UK entry restrictions.
• Italy: Schools reopen, with tests available for staff and students.
• Spain: Schools return to face-to-face teaching, while universities mostly following blended learning model.

If a country you’re interested in doesn’t appear here, or if you would like more details, please check past updates or contact the country representative. 

We have restarted English examinations in 30 countries in Europe. For the latest update by country, please check: https://www.ielts.org/news/2020/changes-to-ielts-test-arrangements-in-some-locations-due-to-novel-coronavirus. 

If you have any feedback, please contact me or any of the country staff listed below. 

Thank you - and stay safe. 

Almut Caspary – Higher Education and Research Lead, EU Europe (Almut.Caspary@britishcouncil.org). 

FRANCE

Updated 1 September

Wearing a mask is now compulsory in all closed spaces in France where several people are located. This includes public places, such as trains, museums and supermarkets, as well as in companies and professional places, such as meeting rooms, open spaces, hallway and offices, unless you are on your own. This also applies to universities but several universities have decided stricter rules requiring all students, staff and users to wear a mask anywhere on campus.

Masks are also compulsory inside and outside all public spaces in red areas of France (19 départements - equivalent to counties).

Where masks are not compulsory, it is one-metre physical distancing is recommended.

School and university closures

Schools and universities started to reopen as of 1 September, but may have to close if there are Covid-19 cases confirmed.

Student financial support

The French Ministry of Higher Education and Research has allocated €2.3 billion to support students. The money is going towards measures such as:

• Freezing of university registration fees
• Revaluation of grants based on social criteria
• Actions for students with disabilities
• Civic service and student employment
• Numerous additional aid schemes
• Accommodation search support
• Redeveloping or adapting university cafeterias
• Actions in favour of student life.

Source: https://www.enseignementsup-recherche.gouv.fr/cid153425/rentree-2020-le-guide-de-rentree.html (in French)

Remote and online academic provision

Teaching is 100 per cent face-to-face for schools. Children over the age of 11 and teachers must wear masks. Universities are running mostly face-to-face with some blended learning (especially in lectures).

International students

As of 18 August, French consulates have been authorised to deliver visas to international students and researchers. International students and researchers from countries in the green area can travel to France without restriction. The green area (at date of writing) is:

• European area : European Union Member States, United Kingdom, Andorra, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San Marina, Switzerland, Vatican
• Other countries : Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, New Zealand, Rwanda, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia, Uruguay (the list is updated every two weeks).

Students and researchers coming from 'red area' countries must carry with them:

• An exceptional international travel certificate for Metropolitan France which can be downloaded on the Home Affairs Ministry website.
• A sworn statement that you do not have COVID-19 symptoms (included in the same document).
• A 'contact' sheet providing your residence address in France

There are also additional steps for entrants from specific countries, including: 

• Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Bolivia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, India, Israel/Palestinian territories, Kyrgyzstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Lebanon, Madagascar, Maldives, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Oman, Peru, Qatar, Serbia, South Africa or Turkey: Students and researchers must show a negative PCR test taken less than 72 hours before boarding, or carry out a test upon arrival. In case of positive result, a 14-day quarantine is mandatory.
• Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, the United States or Panama: Students and researchers must show a negative Covid-19 test taken less than 72 hours before boarding.
• From all other countries: students and researchers are invited to show a negative PCR test taken less than 72 hours before boarding or carry out a voluntary 14-day quarantine on arrival. Such quarantine implies staying at home, avoiding contact with others as much as possible, monitoring your temperature and reporting any symptom to a doctor. 

More information for international students (in English): https://www.campusfrance.org/en/back-to-school-2020-advice-for-students-researchers-coming-to-france

Contact

For more information about France, please contact Catherine Saracco (Catherine.Saracco@britishcouncil.fr).

GERMANY 

Updated 31 August

Important note: Education in Germany is largely devolved to the 16 federal states. This means that although there are agreed Germany-wide principles, there are differences in dates of exams, holidays and regulations for schools and higher education institutions. Public health measures are also in the hands of state governments and local authorities, creating a mixed picture across the country as lockdown restrictions are eased at different paces depending on local case numbers and the severity of infections.

The last weeks have seen a spike in numbers of infections, but overall indicators (e.g. no more than 50 infections per 100,000 inhabitants) are still being met in the majority of places. A number of regions have been added to a list of  'risk zones' which come with mandatory quarantine after return (e.g. Paris, large areas in the south of France and most of Spain). The regime of free Covid-19 tests to be offered at airports to people returning from high risk countries ends at the beginning of September. Germany's contact-tracing 'Corona-Warn-App' has been downloaded 17 million times as of the end of August. There have been some issues with the app, particularly on older devices, but usage is still encouraged by the Robert Koch Institute, Germany’s public health body. 

Schools and universities

Schools in most states have now returned after the summer break. The last two states will go back to school at the beginning of September. All states have agreed that pupils should return in person as long as the number of infections is low enough, with measures in place to keep new infections to a minimum. In some states, physical distancing will be suspended in classrooms, although it is required in other parts of the school, while in others, use of face masks is mandatory in classrooms as well.

All states have plans in place to continue lessons should infection numbers rise beyond an acceptable limit. A return to full online provision is the 'worst-case scenario' in a series of action levels, with intermediate steps including reduced class sizes with classes rotating between remote and in-person schooling.

University applications and admissions processes for the 2020-21 intake have started. The majority of universities are expecting to teach mostly online until the end of the year. Some are planning to allow students to return to campus in the autumn. Calls from students and professors to return to onsite teaching are getting louder.

Examinations

Abitur (A-level equivalent) grades have been issued in all states. Results are on par with, and in some cases slightly better than, previous years. 

Students can decide whether to take university exams and universities have to offer both in-person and online options.

Financial and academic support

The €500-per-month grants for June, July and August provided by the Federal Ministry of Education for students struggling financially as a result of the pandemic are facing criticism for being too bureaucratic and excluding certain groups of students. The scheme has been extended until the end of September to benefit more students. 

Interest charged on student loans has been temporarily removed. Germany's one-year interest-free student loans, conceived as another mitigation measure for students in financial need, have so far proved unpopular, although this is perhaps unsurprising given that take-up of student loans in Germany has been low for years.

With these grants due to finish after September and the large number of student jobs that have been lost during the crisis, there are stark warnings that the current crisis is turning into a 'debt trap' for students, despite the extra measures.

Other insights: UK in the media 

There continues to be regular coverage of both Covid-19 numbers and policies in the UK, and of the stalling Brexit negotiations between the UK and the EU.

Confusion around A-Level results and the challenges this has brought for universities has also not gone unnoticed in the German press.

Contact 

For more information about Germany, please contact Ailsa Kienberger (ailsa.kienberger@britishcouncil.de).

GREECE

Updated 2 September

Greece's total and daily / weekly numbers of cases remain comparatively low - Greece is ranked 89th in the world with regards to total cases - and Greece's tourism minister, Harry Theoharis, has said the country has 'a much lower number of infections compared to most other countries in Europe. We're actually in the right direction and going down in terms of the average numbers'.

However, following a significant rise in cases from travellers returning from Greece, Scotland has announced a 14-day quarantine on arrivals from Greece, Wales is asking arrivals from the Greek island of Zante to begin the period of quarantine, and England is facing pressure to reconsider quarantine rules for Greece since Scotland and Wales have introduced measures. These are likely to generate concerns and complications for Greek students and families who were ready to depart for studies in the UK.

Residents from EU+ countries (EU and UK, Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland) are allowed to travel to Greece with some requirements for diagnostic screening or test results on entry. All travellers must complete a Passenger Locator Form by the time they enter country, providing detailed information on their point of departure, the duration of previous stays in other countries, and the address of their stay while in Greece. 

Latest news is collected on Newsnow.co.uk.

Regular travel updates are posted in the webpages of the Greek Tourist Pages https://news.gtp.gr/.

More information is also available at https://travel.gov.gr/#/.

Schools and universities

The new academic year for primary and secondary schools is beginning on Monday 14 September. Masks will be mandatory in all indoor spaces of schools across the country, as well as in outdoor spaces where the safety distance of 1.5 metres can’t be kept. 

Universities and colleges are also expected to open for registration, examinations and small group laboratory work and clinics in line with strict health guidelines issued by the central and local education and health authorities.  

ITALY

Updated 1 September

Schools

School recovery lessons started on 1 September. In some schools, they will take place in person, and in others remotely, depending on the autonomous choice of the individual schools.

Serological Covid-19 tests for school teachers and staff are now available in all regions of Italy. The tests, which started in the Lazio and Tuscany regions, have been extended to the whole national territory. There are about two million tests available. They remain on a voluntary basis and are completed seven days before the beginning of the school year.

Schools will reopen on 14 September, but there could be differences between regions. In view of the restart, classrooms have been enlarged and schools are looking for more space.  Schools will reopen without mandatory face masks for students. In high schools, the need for protective devices will be assessed according to the increase in new cases. How schools should manage infections and school transport has yet to be defined on a national level.

Minister of Education Azzolina has announced the hiring of 70,000 school staff, including teachers and technical staff. Single desks started to be delivered to schools last week.

Contact

For more information about Italy, please contact Filomena Casamassa (Filomena.Casamassa@BritishCouncil.it).

SPAIN

Updated 2 September

Schools are returning as the number of cases continues to rise in Spain. Schools start to go back this week and start dates continue up to 15 September. 

Measures include masks for over six year olds, distancing, class bubbles, allocating extra space, extra staff and testing. More details available (in Spanish) in this article. 

Most universities and education institutions for over-16 or -18-year-olds have announced blended learning, combining face-to-face with online education for the majority of their students.  Most university courses start from mid to late September. 

Contact

For more information about Spain, please contact Carolina Jimenez (Carolina.Jimenez@britishcouncil.es).

COUNTRY REPRESENTATIVES

• Bulgaria: Ivaylo.Slavov@britishcouncil.bg
• Cyprus: pantelitsa.michael@cy.britishcouncil.org 
• France: Catherine.Saracco@britishcouncil.fr  
• Germany: ailsa.kienberger@britishcouncil.de  
• Greece: Maria.Tsakali@britishcouncil.gr  
• Italy: Filomena.Casamassa@BritishCouncil.it 
• Ireland: Mags.Walsh@ie.britishcouncil.org
• Poland: Julia.Plachecka@britishcouncil.pl 
• Romania: gabriel.ivan@britishcouncil.ro
• Spain: Carolina.Jimenez@britishcouncil.es  

PAST UPDATES

• 28 July: Bulgaria, France, Germany, Italy, Romania, Spain
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