Rouhani stresses importance of education for students despite pandemic

Tehran, Sept 5, IRNA – Iranian President Hassan Rouhani stressed the importance of starting the eduction year for kids despite the pandemic situation and said that it is wrong to look at health and education as two extremes that cannot exist at the same time. The president made the remarks Saturday morning while addressing a ceremony via videoconference which was held to mark the beginning of the new educational year amid the global spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The Iranian schools opened today following a seven-month holiday due to COVID19 pandemic. “It is very important for us to continue with the knowledge learning and education system while trying to safeguard lives of the people, livelihood of the society, and the health of the people and society,” Rouhani said. As the duality of bread and life and the duality of health and faith proved to be wrong over the past months, the Iranian officials assisted by students and teachers will prove that there is no such duality between health and education, the president said. Rouhani said that the Ministry of Education has always been concerned with the health of the students since long years ago. He noted that the government will be more concerned than ever this year over the health of the students as the society faces a natural enemy – the COVID-19 – which also requires more effort and attention from the parents, family members and the teachers. “Science and education begin today to say that education will not be closed in our country even in the toughest situations.” The president said that even eight years of the Iraqi imposed war on Iran in the 1980s could not shut down education in Iran when the Iranian students continued to study at schools despite the difficulties of those days.