The 16 German federal states have agreed to scrap both masks and mass testing in primary and secondary schools in the coming months, signalling a return to normality for millions of children. 

Masks and mass testing to be phased out in German schools

At a meeting of state education ministers on Friday in Lübeck in Schleswig-Holstein, it was decided that children will no longer be required to wear masks in classrooms after April 2, according to a report in Bild. 

The ministers also agreed to gradually phase out the regular testing of children, regardless of whether they have symptoms of coronavirus or not, in May. 

“None of us can say what will happen in autumn”

Announcing the decision, the state education minister for Hesse, Alexander Lorz, said that it was time to let children return to a normal teaching environment. However, he warned that the situation might worsen once again after the summer holidays, as the country heads into the colder months, saying, “None of us can say what will happen in the autumn.” 

Some states are already pressing ahead with plans to loosen restrictions in schools, with Lower Saxony having announced back in February that it would begin to phase out the requirement to wear a mask in classrooms.