Maharashtra may reopen schools for primary section after Diwali

Children wearing masks in the primary section of the Babasaheb Deshpande School at Sion in 2020. Pic/Ashish Raje

After reopening middle, secondary and higher secondary schools for students, the state government is thinking of resuming physical classes for primary sections. The exercise of collecting feedback from rural and urban regions for the same has started, with School Education Minister Varsha Gaikwad meeting chief executive officers (CEO) of zilla parishads on Friday.

Due to the decreasing COVID-19 cases, in-person classes for Stds V to XII have started from October 4. But a decision on the primary sections, from Std I to IV across Maharashtra and Std V to VII in urban areas, is pending because of the cases being higher there than in rural parts. Gaikwad discussed the issue with the CEOs, because primary school education is mostly imparted by ZPs in the hinterland. The general opinion that emerged was that the final call would be taken after Diwali.

Rural schools have been holding classes for Stds V to VII offline with due safety precautions while their urban counterparts have been told to wait. With colleges too, back to physical classes early this week, only the primary and middle schools (in the cities) remain shut offline. Nursery and pre-nursery schools are also closed for offline classes. State-run and private residential schools are also awaiting the order to resume.

Gaikwad is expected to deliberate with Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and the State COVID Task Force and its paediatric group about coming to a decision and preparing standard operating procedures (SoPs), in addition to the ones issued for the sections allowed to resume physical classes.

Staggered school hours and entry of students, social distancing, school health clinics, sanitisation of classrooms and premises are among the SoPs. The local administrations have been empowered to resume and shut, depending on the pandemic situation in their areas.

Teachers, educationists speak

Vasant Kalpande, a renowned educationist said, "The younger generation requires traditional schooling more than older one, as it is very important for their overall development. This is certainly a good decision by government and should be implemented soon."

Adding to this, Jaywant Kulkarni, a senior teacher from Gandhi Balmandir school in Kurla, said, "There are many students who do not have proper access to online education and they are bound to return to school as soon as the classes are given go-ahead. It is going to be a good move considering academic loss of students. The younger the student, the more difficult this loss will be to bridge as their curriculum includes basic concepts." While the move is being appreciated by many, it is also being reiterated that it shouldn't in anyway be considered as the COVID risk has lessened. "With more students coming to attend in-person classes, schools will have to be more cautious. COVID protocols have to be adhered to very strictly to ensure safety," said a school principal.

Inputs by Pallavi Smart