Photos show South Korean students eating and learning with plastic screens between them as schools start to reopen

• High schools in South Korea reopened on Wednesday as the country's coronavirus cases begin to dwindle.
• Transparent plastic barriers now separate students in classrooms and cafeterias to minimize the risk of spreading the virus.
• Masks, temperature checks, and antibacterial gel are also required before entering campus each day.
• Social-distancing measures also remain in place.
• Scroll down to see what the first day back at school looked like.

Schools in South Korea have reopened, and photos show much has changed, with plastic screens now separating students in their classrooms and cafeterias.

On Wednesday, high school seniors were the first students to return to school as life in the country slowly returns to normal.

Students were supposed to go back to school in March, but that date was repeatedly pushed back due to the outbreak.

Now schools have put in a set of stringent new rules to prevent the coronavirus from breaking out in campuses. Earlier this week France reported 70 new coronavirus cases in schools that were allowed to reopen.

In South Korea, before entering school campuses, students are now required to:

• Get their temperature checked upon arrival each day.
• Rub their hands with antibacterial gel.
• Wear a mask and refrain from shaking hands.

And in cafeterias:

• Transparent glass dividers now separate each seat from the front and sides.
• Students can't sit opposite each other and must sit in a zig-zag pattern, leaving a space between seats.
• No one can sit on the end seat near a thoroughfare.
• No one can share water or food.
• Students must bring their own cutlery.

Scroll down to see what this looks like:

Students at this school in Daejeon ate their first lunch separated by plastic screens ...

High school students eat lunch at a cafeteria in Daejeon, South Korea, May 20, 2020.      Yonhap/via REUTERS

... while this school in Ulsan used opaque dividers, and sat with space in between them.

High school students eat a lunch at a school cafeteria in Ulsan, South Korea, May 20, 2020.      Yonhap via Reuters

This school in Daegu also put in transparent partitions between seats in its canteen.

A canteen at a school in Daegu.      Twitter/Arirang TV

In many cases, class schedules, lunch hours, and even bathroom breaks have been staggered to thin the crowds.

A school in Daegu, South Korea, seen on Wednesday.      Twitter/ArirangTV

Source: BBC

Classroom desks have also been moved further apart.

An empty classroom at a school in Seoul on May 11, 2020, ahead of its reopening.      Gety

Some schools have also put transparent partitions on desks in classrooms.

Plastic dividers seen at Jeonmin High School in Daejon, South Korea, on Wednesday.      Reuters

All school staff members and students now have to wear masks, as well as maintain social distancing measures on campus.

Students arrive at Kyungbock High School in Seoul on May 20, 2020.      Ed JONES /AFP

These students in Seoul have to line up with at least two steps between them. As students were reunited, some put their arms around their friends' shoulders, only to be told by teachers to stay apart, Reuters reported.

High school students stand in line to enter their cafeteria in Seoul, South Korea, on May 20, 2020.      Yonhap via Reuters

Source: Reuters

Some teachers are also finding it "practically impossible" to implement some of the stringent new rules, like staggering bathroom breaks. "I feel like we're carrying a time bomb," one told Reuters.

Students wearing face masks stand in line to have their body temperature checked at a high school in Ulsan, South Korea, on May 20, 2020.      Yonhap via Reuters

Source: Reuters