Government schools set to reopen today

Schools across the state will reopen for students of classes 10 and 12 from Monday, nearly a month after the Haryana government decided to shut them amid a spike

Schools across the state will reopen for students of classes 10 and 12 from Monday, nearly a month after the Haryana government decided to shut them amid a spike of Covid-19 cases among government school students. In addition to the standard Covid-19 measures, such as thermal scanning and sanitisation, students are required to produce a health clearance, as per the standard operating procedures (SOPs) issued by the education department.

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Suman Sharma, principal of Government Model Senior Secondary School in Sector 4/7, said that the school had been extensively sanitised ahead of the reopening in line with the directives issued by the department. “Since the past two days, we have been sending reminders to students about the health screening test that they need to undergo prior to school visits. They have been getting the screening test done at various facilities. The clearance will be a requirement for the first time. Subsequently, we will be conducting daily temperature checks in school,” said Sharma.

Shyam Raghav, principal of Government Senior Secondary School, Bhondsi, said that students in board classes were keen on coming to school for doubt-clearing sessions ahead of exams and were likely to benefit with schools reopening. “Many students find physical classroom sessions more convenient for understanding concepts. They used to enquire about school visits while the schools were closed. We are definitely expecting students to turn up for sessions from tomorrow,” said Raghav. Besides students, teaching and non-teaching staff will also be returning back to work after a gap of nearly a month.

While government schools are expecting students from Monday onwards, private schools are likely to continue with online classes. While some schools are in the process of seeking feedback from parents, others said that they would only be asking students to visit schools for examinations and practical sessions.

Anita Malhotra, principal of Lotus Valley International School, said that since most parents were not in favour of sending their children to school, students would be asked to only visit the school for practical sessions.

Aparna Erry, principal of DAV Public School, said that the school would take a decision on visits on the basis of parents’ feedback and the school’s winter vacation schedule.

Yashpal Yadav, state president of the Haryana Shikshan Sansthan Sangathan — a union of private schools in the state —however, said that since the examinations were round the corner, schools needed to conduct classes. “Classes for merely three hours will not be sufficient to cover all topics. Students will need to visit schools regularly ahead of exams,” said Yadav. He also said that the department should have made arrangements for conducting health screening tests on campus.

Deputy district education officer Kalpna Singh said that the health clearance was being sought to ascertain the recent medical history of the student. “Students will be visiting school after a gap of many days. The health clearance will give us an idea about the student’s recent medical history. Once students start visiting school regularly, we will continue with daily temperature checks on premises. The clearance will be needed again if there’s a gap of many days between visits,” said Singh.