Starting February 20th, 2021, COVID-19 cases in Cambodia have spiked up tremendously, averaging about 50 people or more in a day. People have been getting infected day by day, and no one really knows who is carrying the virus. Deaths rates caused by covid is starting to rise little by little. People are scared to go outside but because of their low income, they have to go outside facing the deadly virus. During these hard times, students had it tough. They've been studying online for the past few months, not going back to school, and some even trapped at home. So should the IGCSE exam be cancelled or continue on?

With the unsafe covid situation in our country, I think it is best if we were to cancel it so that we do not risk helping the virus spread. As a collective, we should all help flatten the curve and don’t cause any more unnecessary casualties. Taking the test would put more people at risk of contracting the virus which in turn puts their family members’ health at risk. Students’ health should be the school’s number one priority and taking this test in the middle of a pandemic will prove otherwise.

Having this test be continued and not cancelled does more harm than good. Not only would it help the spread but it would also put more stress and overtime on the frontline workers. Hospitals have already run out of beds and places to treat patients, so having a gathering of people in one test room sounds incredibly irresponsible. We should not be causing any more trouble that can be avoided by just having to cancel the test.

Vaccines may be out but it is not guaranteed to make people immune to it. If just one person has the virus in that test room it would put hundreds more at risk of it. Other countries have decided to cancel it for their communities safety and show that it is possible so why shouldn’t we just cancel it too. Deciding to have the test continue is an extremely irresponsible choice that will cost heavily on the victims.

COVID-19 is still very much prevalent and running rampant right now in our very own country causing a whole ordeal to everyone’s lives. We should respect covid guidelines and try our best to adhere to the rules and help decrease the amount of surging cases we’ve been having and to do this we need to cancel IGCSE to decrease the spread of the virus. Having our school performance and grades averaged out to get a test for the IGCSE would showcase more of the student’s academic ability so there will be no loss.

By signing this petition, you support the idea of prioritizing students' health over an academic examination and believes in protecting the lives of our people; not just students but people in general. We hope this will allow our school principal and the government to use their authority to save people's lives and stop the spread of COVID-19. Thank you and stay safe!