As per the circular of the Department of School Education and Sports of the State Government, the Municipal Commissioner has been given the power to take decisions regarding the commencement of schools in the municipal areas, especially in the restricted areas and as the schooling sessions are about to start, Municipal Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe on Thursday interacted with the directors, secretaries and principals of private schools in the city through video conferencing, regarding the preparations to be made by the schools before starting the new academic session. Preeti Mishrikotar, Education Officer, NMC was present on the session.
“Currently, the virus of covid-19 is increasing everywhere and Nagpur is also in the red zone. In such a situation it would be dangerous to start any school in the city. It is also being noted that no student should be left for education themselves during this period. However, permission to start a school for this is can not be given at present. Therefore, the schools themselves should create a ‘platform’ for online education and start the classes of the students even without starting the school” appealed Municipal Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe during the video conference .
Mundhe also said that all the schools in the state start on June 26 every year. But looking at the situation there is a risk of corona infection to spread if we give permission to start the academic session.
All the schools should have a meeting of the management committee on June 26 to discuss the preparations which are to be made, cleanliness of the school toilets, and all the care to be taken after the commencement of the school should be planned before hand, planning to avoid overcrowding and how to start the school should also be discussed in the meetings, asked Mundhe.
Every classroom, bathroom, doors, windows should be disinfected before starting school, students should be given hygiene lessons ordered Mundhe. He also said that there should be a detailed discussion on how to wash hands, regular use of masks, how to maintain social distance.
Students should be brought into the habit of online learning and education however, there are some obstacles in this. According to a survey of all medium and all management schools in the city, an estimated 54 % of students from classes one to five have access to TVs, Android mobiles and set-top boxes, The remaining 22.41 per cent students do not have both the systems. Sixty-five per cent students in class seventh to ninth have both the systems while 32 per cent students are deprived of these facilities. In the secondary group, 72 per cent students of class 9 to 12 have both facilities while 21.37 per cent students do not. In such a situation, the commissioner appealed to connect every students from every school to online education.
In current situation students need education more than school. All school management should make efforts in this regard. The Government of Maharashtra is providing various ‘platforms’ for online education. Private schools should also coordinate with each other to create some ‘platforms’ for the education of students, Mundhe suggested.
According to the circular issued by the state government, classes of ninth, tenth and twelfth can be started from July, 2020, classes of sixth to eighth from August 2020, classes third to fifth from September, 2020 and class of eleventh can be started on the basis of Class tenths results.
However, the decision will be taken looking at the situation of Covid-19. Parents should encourage their wards to watch or listen to educational programs available on TV or radio for the students of class I and II.
