The boycott of the second semester in high-schools has spread to nearly 80 percent of all students, said the Association of high school students. They demands that the graduation tests are reduced down to just two classes, from the current four, citing the poor quality of online teaching as a reason why so many of them have trouble keeping up.

Students who boycott are being threatened to return to classes. Our relationship with our teachers is now one of intimidation, said the Association.

Education Minister Mila Carovska said that reducing the graduation exam is possible, but only starting next year. Since the start of the pandemic, high-school students demanded in-person teaching, citing the poor quality of online education but only a small number of trades schools were allowed to do so.