WATCH: Students Across Pakistan Return To Classes After Six-Month Break
Millions of students across Pakistan have returned to classes following a six-month break due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Higher-education institutions and senior school classes reopened on September 15 for the first time since they shut down in March.
The federal government last week announced the staggered resumption of classes following a sharp decline in the country's daily infection numbers.
Education Minister Shafqat Mehmood said that middle-school classes would reopen on September 23, while elementary school would return on September 30.
Back To School Amid The COVID-19 Pandemic
1/24Alegra Bajrami (left), wearing a face mask to protect against the coronavirus, enters a schoolyard on the first day of the new academic year in Kosovo's capital, Pristina. Kosovar schools reopened on September 14 for the first time since March when the COVID-19 crisis began.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
2/24An elementary-school student wearing a face mask passes through a disinfection tunnel on the first day of school in Pristina. Kosovo's government postponed the start of the school year for two weeks due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
3/24Elementary-school students wearing face masks keep their distance on the first day of school in Pristina, Kosovo.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
4/24A woman and a girl wearing protective face masks chat as they gather with teachers, parents, and other children in front of a school in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, on September 14 as classes started again after the summer break. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, most of Romania's schools reopened with students alternating between classroom learning and remote education.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
5/24Children rush through the corridor toward their classroom after passing medical checks during the first day of school at the George Enescu National College of Music in Bucharest, Romania, on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
6/24A health worker shows a little girl how to use a hand sanitizer during the first day of school at the George Enescu National College of Music in Bucharest, Romania, on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
7/24Children during the first day back at school in Romania.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
8/24High school students social distance on the first day of the new academic year in Drama, Greece, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Schools reopened on September 14 amid concerns over a new spike in infections along with resistance by some parents to a regulation stipulating that all children and adults must wear protective face masks.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
9/24The first day of school in Bucharest, Romania, on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
10/24A staff member checks the body temperature of students at the entrance to the Islamabad Model College of Commerce for Girls on September 15 after educational institutions were reopened nearly six months after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
11/24A worker sprays disinfectant in a classroom at a private school in Karachi, Pakistan, on September 14 following a government announcement that educational institutions would be reopening nearly six months after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
12/24A teacher puts up a sign in a government school in Karachi following the announcement that educational institutions would reopen, starting from September 15, after nearly six months under lockdown.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
13/24A student wearing a face mask and gloves takes part in an assembly at a school in Karachi, Pakistan, on September 15 after educational institutions reopened.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
14/24A student wearing a face shield waits to enter school during the first day back after the summer break at the George Enescu National College of Music in Bucharest, Romania, on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
15/24A teacher undergoes a body-temperature scan as she arrives for the start of the school year at the Luigi Einaudi High School in Rome, during the the COVID-19 pandemic on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
16/24Students wearing face masks take part in an assembly at a school in Karachi, Pakistan.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
17/24Students wearing face masks attend a class at a school in Peshawar, Pakistan, on September 15.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
18/24A pupil wearing a face shield arrives at a primary school on the first day of class of the new academic year in the Greek capital, Athens, on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
19/24A drawing hangs from a blackboard during the first day of school at the George Enescu National College of Music in Bucharest on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
20/24A teacher leads her class toward a medical checkpoint before entering classrooms during the first day of school at the George Enescu National College of Music in Bucharest.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
21/24A father with his son wearing a protective face mask wait on September 14 in front of a school in Bucharest, Romania, where classes started again after the summer break.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
22/24The beginning of the new school year at the Grigore Moisil High School in Lasi, Romania, on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
23/24Elementary-school students wearing face masks keep their distance on the first day of school in Pristina, Kosovo.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
24/24Social distancing between students and teachers in the yard of a school in Brasov, Romania, on September 14.
Schools are reopening for the first time since March in Kosovo, Pakistan, Romania, and other countries, with students and staff taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
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Teachers and students will have to follow precautionary measures, including the wearing of masks and social distancing.
Pakistan has recorded more than 302,000 coronavirus cases and over 6,300 deaths, but daily infections have been slowing since July, with the authorities reporting 404 new cases and six deaths on September 15.
RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal is a public-service broadcaster providing a powerful alternative to extremist propaganda in Pakistan's remote tribal regions along the border with Afghanistan.