Novel coronavirus disrupting international study across the globe

Published 27/01/2020

With many cities in China on lockdown due to novel coronavirus which broke out in the Chinese city of Wuhan last month, international students have found themselves unable to get to courses abroad while classes in-country have been postponed until mid-February.

The spread of the disease will likely be exacerbated by bad timing. Chinese New Year is a peak time for travel as an estimated 3 billion individual trips are made both within the country and internationally.

“The university is providing financial support to international and Chinese students who wish to return home”

Governments have been making plans to help citizens in the worst-hit areas, with the UK foreign office said it was “working to make available an option for British nationals to leave Hubei province”.

A statement from UK guardianship organisation Bright World explained that it had has taken the decision to advise all students to remain in the UK for their half-term holiday.

“Bright World takes care of a number of students from Hong Kong and Mainland China, many of whom had planned on returning home during the February half term when their boarding school closes,” the statement explained.

“In light of the travel restrictions and following advice from Public Health England, a number of UK Boarding Schools have issued similar advice to parents, thus to avoid any difficulties in students returning back to school after their holiday.”

A spokesperson for Duke Kunshan University in Jiangsu province, which is postponing all its classes until February 17 is restricting access to the campus to essential personnel only.

“All other members of the Duke Kunshan community – students, faculty who do not reside on campus, and staff – and outside visitors will not be permitted to enter before February 15,” the spokesperson said.

“The university is providing financial support to international and Chinese students who wish to return home until classes restart.”

Both Macau and Hong Kong have also delayed students’ return to school. The latter has banned all citizens from Hubei province from entering the city as of January 26.

Every area of China has now reported cases of the disease, with the exception of Tibet.

The first overseas case was identified in Thailand on January 13 and there are now also cases in Japan, South Korea, the US, Vietnam, Malaysia, Nepal, France and Australia.

Chinese students heading abroad have been debating whether to risk taking their flights, worried that they will be stopped at the border upon arrival.

Several Chinese students from Wuhan – including two heading to Macleans College in Auckland, New Zealand – have been unable to get to school.

Some students that have left China, and particularly Wuhan itself, have reported being doxxed online. Several people being tested for coronavirus in the US and Scotland are Chinese international students.

Education companies have additionally reported cancellations from Chinese clients and expressed worries that the disease will have a similar impact on the industry as the SARs outbreak in 2003.

Chinese government spokesperson Geng Shuang sought to reassure the international community at a recent press conference.

“Acting with openness, transparency and a high sense of responsibility to global health security, Chinese authorities will continue to share information of the epidemic with the WHO, relevant nations and China’s Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan regions in a timely manner,” he said.

Meanwhile, many have taken to social media to share messaging around school closures and other precautions being taken to limit the spread of the virus.

A student in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province where there have so far been 151 confirmed cases told The PIE News that the government are handling the outbreak “very well”.

“They brought measures immediately across China. Masks are mandatory if you go outside, but we’re advised to stay indoors unless we absolutely need to leave,” the student added.

The post Novel coronavirus disrupting international study across the globe appeared first on The PIE News.

Recent news stories