【Ming Pao】The Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE) English Language oral examination, which was suspended for three years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will be resumed this year and will take place from the 21st to the 30th of this month. The Examination Authority has announced the epidemic prevention arrangements, requiring all candidates to wear their own surgical masks during all examinations, including the oral examination. They must not remove the masks during the examination, and failure to comply will be considered a violation. Candidates are also reminded to speak loudly during the oral examination to ensure that the examiners and other candidates can hear them. Similar to previous years, the Examination Authority allows candidates infected with COVID-19 to choose to take the written examination but are not allowed to enter the general examination venue. They will be arranged to take the examination at designated venues. The Examination Authority is currently discussing with the Education Bureau and relevant departments to determine the locations of the designated venues and will announce them as soon as possible.

The Examination Authority has also announced epidemic prevention arrangements for the DSE (see table), requiring candidates to correctly wear their own surgical masks during all examinations, including the English Language oral examination. Candidates are also required to measure their body temperature and fill in and sign a "Candidate Health Declaration Form" on each examination day. If a candidate feels unwell, such as experiencing symptoms of acute respiratory infection or having a fever, they should undergo a rapid antigen test and take a photo of the negative result next to their admission ticket for inspection.

Candidates infected with COVID-19 this year can choose to take the written examination, and the Examination Authority will provide designated venues for them, the locations of which will be announced soon. If a school candidate is unable to attend the examination due to being infected, they can apply for a "subject assessment grade," with the highest grade being level 5.

Regarding the English Language oral examination, the Examination Authority stated that candidates must wear masks throughout the examination and maintain a distance of about 1 meter between each candidate. Candidates are reminded to speak loudly during the examination to ensure that the examiners and other candidates can hear them, and the oral examination recording system can clearly capture the audio.

The Examination Authority explained that although the government has lifted the mask mandate, they have decided to continue implementing a series of infection prevention arrangements in consultation with the Education Bureau, the school sector, and the advice of the Centre for Health Protection to "minimize the risk of candidates being unable to take the examination due to infection."

Principal encourages candidates to communicate through eye contact
Hezekiah Mui, the principal of the CNEC Lau Wing Sang Secondary School, stated that the school had previously organized joint mock oral examinations with several other schools, and all candidates wore masks during the examinations. He believes that candidates are not surprised by the requirement to wear masks during the oral examination. The school has reminded candidates to strengthen eye contact and speak loudly during the oral examination. He also mentioned that despite the easing of the COVID-19 pandemic, many candidates still expressed concerns about the impact of infection on their performance. He observed that recent Form Six candidates returning to school for revision were wearing masks, indicating a strong awareness of epidemic prevention. He stated that they have become accustomed to wearing masks and may feel uncomfortable without them.

Regarding the Examination Authority's arrangement to provide designated venues for infected candidates, Hezekiah Mui expressed the hope that the authorities would announce the locations as soon as possible. In previous years, relevant candidates could go to the Chuk Yeung Road Special Examination Venue, but this isolation facility has been closed. He hopes that the Examination Authority can set up designated venues in different locations such as Hong Kong Island and Kowloon to facilitate candidates from different areas.