[Editors note, Sep. 29 10:30am: The previous version of this article stated that the entry PCR test for quarantined P6 students will be administered by a visiting Certis officer at the students' homes. The Ministry of Education reached out to Mothership following publication of the article, and clarified that the PCR test will be administered by swab providers appointed by the Ministry of Health. The article has been amended accordingly.]

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The Ministry of Education (MOE) and Singapore Examinations and Assessments Board (SEAB) have announced on Sep. 28 the procedures necessary for quarantined students who wish to sit for the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE).

Apply for quarantine leave and take PCR and ART tests

The announcement is a follow-up of the previous one on Sep. 26, where SEAB announced that students who are on quarantine order (QO), leave of absence (LOA), or approved absence (AA) will be allowed to take their national year-end examinations.

Students on QO are allowed to apply for leave from their quarantine in order to sit for all their PSLE examinations at their own schools from Sep. 30 to Oct. 6.

To do so, students would first have to inform their respective school on the day that they receive their QO, and by no later than 12pm.

Next, students would have to undergo an entry polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, which will be administered by swab providers appointed by the Ministry of Health (MOH) at their homes.

Their PCR test results will be processed after 24 hours, and the students will be notified on HealthHub.

After which, students will only be eligible for a quarantine leave application if they receive a negative entry PCR test.

Students will be informed by their respective schools when their leave from quarantine applications have been approved.

Taking into consideration the total time needed for the PCR test result and the application for quarantine leave, the earliest that students can sit for their PSLE exam is two days after they have been notified of their QO, according to MOE–SEAB.

This means that students who have received a QO and have a paper scheduled the next day will be unable to sit for their examination on that respective day.

Instead, these students can apply for special consideration with their respective school.

Additionally, students will have to take an antigen rapid test (ART) at 6pm on the day before the exam.

These ART test kits will be provided to the students by another MOH-appointed service provider and delivered to students' homes by the next day following the entry PCR swab.

The students' negative PCR test and photos of their negative ART test, which includes their name and the date that the test was administered, have to be presented at the examination, alongside their identification documents and entry proof.

As students are only allowed to travel to the examination venue by private transport, or on foot, with no additional stops in between, students who will be accompanied by a person are to inform their school.

The person accompanying the student should be a family member or caregiver from the same household, and will also have to go through the same testing regiment to be granted a similar leave from quarantine arrangement.

Those who have tested positive for Covid-19, or are on stay-home notice, will not be allowed to sit for their PSLE examinations.

The table below provides a summary of the arrangements for the 2021 year-end written examinations beginning from Sep. 30:

For more information, click here and here.

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