Learning must continue even if schools are shut: Manish Sisodia

In a written statement, the government’s directorate of education also shared that over 95% of the students in various classes were able to access study material while attending online classes.

Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Thursday reviewed the online teaching-learning process in Delhi government schools, and said that it was crucial for learning to continue even as in-person classes stay shut due to Covid curbs.

Besides laying emphasis on the need to bridge learning gaps, Sisodia, who also holds the education portfolio, directed officials to ensure that the emotional and mental well-being of children was also taken care of while they undertook academic activities.

Besides laying emphasis on the need to bridge learning gaps, Sisodia, who also holds the education portfolio, directed officials to ensure that the emotional and mental well-being of children was also taken care of while they undertook academic activities.

“Due to the repetitive school closure during Covid pandemic, there has been a loss of learning for the students. The health of students is very important for us, but it is also important that the education of the children does not stop. The Covid-induced pandemic has posed new challenges for us, but our team is working diligently to ensure that every child has access to education in these times,” said Sisodia.

In a written statement, the government’s directorate of education also shared that over 95% of the students in various classes were able to access study material while attending online classes.

The directorate added that 98.2% of students of Class 11 and 98.6% of Class 12 students were participating in the online classes.

Himanshu Gupta, director, Directorate of Education, who took part in the review along with Sisodia, said that the DoE was sending worksheets weekly on WhatsApp to students in nursery to class 11. He added online classes were being conducted for students in classes 9-12.

“Children who do not have digital devices to attend online classes are being provided printed copies of the worksheets every week by schools. The department is strongly emphasising on assessment of students through innovative methods to understand the students’ participation and their learning levels,” said Gupta.

Besides regular online classes and assignments, the DoE has also initiated a 100-day reading campaign from this month with the aim of improving the basic reading, writing ability and numerary skills of students, the government said in the statement.

As part of the reading campaign, six worksheets will be sent to students every week, on subjects including Hindi, English and Mathematics, it added.

Schools in Delhi have been shut five times since April 2020 – thrice owing to concerns over Covid-19, and twice because of hazardous pollution levels. Educators and experts say that the prolonged and repeated closures have derailed teaching-learning, and adversely impacted the mental health of children, who need peer to peer interaction for all-round development.