Parents wary of schools reopening till situation is under control

As the number of Covid-19 infections continues to spike across the country, parents of school-going children continue to be unsure about physical classes until a

As the number of Covid-19 infections continues to spike across the country, parents of school-going children continue to be unsure about physical classes until a vaccine is developed. This comes after the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) asked states to furnish by Monday the feedback of parents on reopening of schools.

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In addition to the parents’ preference on the reopening of schools in either August, September or October, the ministry on Friday also asked parents about their expectations from schools whenever they reopen. The final decision in the matter will be taken in consultation with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW).

Opposing the move to reopen schools, All India Parents Association (AIPA) said the current Covid-19 situation wasn’t conducive to allow offline classes for children. “Parents have been asking for a declaration of the 2020-21 academic year as zero year and promote every student. This would help alleviate stress among parents and students at a time when death rates are skyrocketing,” said Ashok Aggarwal, AIPA president.

Most parents HT spoke to opposed the move to reopen schools in the upcoming months without taking stock of the Covid-19 crisis. Vikas Sharma, a west Delhi businessman whose children study in classes 1 and 5, said, “Most parents I know are not in favour of the schools reopening any time before the health crisis subsides. When grownups are participating in meetings over online conferencing, how can we allow our children to go out and expose themselves to the virus?” Sharma also said that while online classes cannot compensate for classroom learning, parents are compromising to protect the health of their children.

Rohini Arora, a south Delhi resident whose daughter studies in Class 5, said, “The government recently came up with revised guidelines about reduced hours for online classes. Parents are mostly satisfied with this and would not want to risk sending their child to school when there have been reports of infection among children in other countries the moment they started going to school,” she said.

Recommendations from the parents’ community include staggered classes conducted in the open, halting all extracurricular activities, shorter classes, no sharing of food or water bottles, compulsory masks and sanitisation whenever schools reopen.

The Delhi Parents’ Association (DPA) also wrote to MHRD on Sunday and said that schools should not reopen till a vaccine is developed for Covid-19 crisis. “Students till Class 8 should be promoted without exams as per the earlier practice. While students of classes 9 and 11 should be tested through online exams, board exams can also be held online if the situation is not under control by March next year,” said Aparajita Gautam, DPA president.

A Delhi government official said that since the order came on Friday, the education department was compiling responses to send to the ministry. “Responses can be varied since there are different types of schools in the capital catering to people from various socio-economic backgrounds. We have had several rounds of conversations with parents on their expectations from schools when they reopen and other suggestions. However, the call over when schools should reopen should be taken by experts,” the official said, requesting anonymity.