All secondary schools in Croatia will switch to online classes as of Monday, thus joining secondary schools in seven counties that have already done so, Science and Education Minister Radovan Fuchs confirmed on Friday.

This is not necessary in some counties, but it supports measures introduced by the national COVID-19 response team to reduce crowding in public transport, Fuchs said.

He added that it was decided that the school recess would last until January 18 to enable a longer period without classes.

We are finishing the semester despite a difficult pandemic period one week before Christmas Eve, and there have been many more classes this semestar than last year when children were not at school for more than 30 days because of the strike, without online classes or support at home, he said.

We did not end the semester early so that we could complete the educational process, and this is the best possible solution because the number of school days is in line with the plan, and we have only extended the winter holidays, Fuchs told the N1 broadcaster.

He also confirmed that the government would honour the agreement with trade unions and as of January 1 increase teachers’ salaries by 4%.