Thousands of students in Hong Kong were among the first in the world to take their final secondary school exams on Friday, despite some students' worries about their own health and social distancing measures in the city remaining in place.
Gloria Tso reports.
Face masks on and pencils sharpened, thousands of students in Hong Kong took university entrance exams Friday (April 24) - at a distance.
They sat for the long-awaited test - at tables six feet apart.
The students are among the first in the world to take their final secondary school exams as schools worldwide have been closed for months on end.
The Diploma of Secondary Education exam, or DSE, helps determine Hong Kong students' admission to higher education.
And adding to the already immense strain on students' mental health, 18-year-old Rita Hung says they must now worry about their physical health, too.
(SOUNDBITE) (Cantonese) 18-YEAR-OLD SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENT, RITA HUNG, SAYING: "That means we are risking our lives for a place at university and we don't even know if we are going to qualify.
So... yes... I do have worries." Many of the students have been stuck at home for months since schools in Hong Kong have been closed since January and the city remains under social distancing limits.
But after a four-week delay, the exam was allowed to go forward.
Students were told to arrive early, get their temperature checked and fill out a health declaration form at the door.
But given that students might not want to risk getting turned away from the exam, 17-year-old Angel Tsoi worried that not everyone would be honest.
(SOUNDBITE) (Cantonese) 17-YEAR-OLD SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENT, ANGEL TSOI, SAYING: "They must want to complete the examination, given that they have spent so much time and put in so much effort preparing for it."
As Hong Kong reports few new daily cases, major state examination to go ahead with virus measures in place.