A number of schools in Japan held graduation ceremonies Tuesday amid the new coronavirus outbreak by limiting the number of participants and shortening the proceedings to prevent the spread of the pneumonia-causing virus.
As Japan entered the last month of the academic year, schools turned to unusual measures to enable graduates and their families to mark the occasion in a brief respite from weeks of school closures prompted by a government request.
At Midoricho Elementary School in the city of Chiba, only graduates, their parents and teachers attended the ceremony, without the presence of lower-grade students who otherwise would have attended. Many participants wore masks and speeches were handed out on paper rather than delivered orally.