Schools could resume with 30% students ‘at a time’ after lockdown, HRD minister hints
New Delhi: Schools are likely to see only 30 per cent of attendance at a time once students get back to classrooms after the Covid-19 lockdown, Union Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ said as he informed teachers about proposed government guidelines to resume classes.
Schools and colleges across the country have been closed since the second week of March in the wake of Covid-19.
As reported, the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is working on guidelines for the reopening of schools after the lockdown. Some of the suggested measures include having no assembly sessions, seminars and gatherings in schools for a long time. Apart from this, schools are also likely to call only 30 per cent of students at a time to maintain social distancing.
During a live interaction with teachers via video-conferencing, Pokhriyal said, “We have asked NCERT to prepare guidelines for re-opening schools and they have done most of the work. The guidelines suggest various things like calling 30 per cent students at a time. If 30 per cent students have to be called in at a time, we will have to see how that needs to work out.”
Officials in NCERT said that the council has suggested two ways a staggered attendance system can be pulled off – either calling some students on one day and the remaining on other days, or managing in shifts wherever it is possible.
While there is no clarity from the government on when schools will reopen, states like Delhi are looking at a July date to reopen.
Notably, the administration in Jammu and Kashmir has also directed school authorities to carry out white washing and fumigation in schools across the UT. (with inputs from theprint.in)
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