Even as colleges affiliated to the University of Mumbai are currently busy conducting their first semester exams online, different student groups have demanded that the state government take immediate steps to reopen colleges and the universities in a phased manner.
In their demand, student groups have stated the need for practical classes for several subjects which have been impossible for colleges to conduct online, leaving students at a loss during exams.
“The first semester across colleges was conducted virtually where the focus was mainly on theory. But a host of subjects in arts, sciences as well as other fields demand for practical classes to understand concepts better, which has been missing from the curriculum,” said Siddharth Ingle, president of Maharashtra Students’ Union (MASU). He added that MASU and other student groups have already raised this issue with local authorities and now hope for the state education minister to take a stand.
“The state has allowed temples and churches to be open to public but schools and colleges still remain shut. Instead of procrastinating, the government should form steps and guidelines to ensure safe reopening of colleges for the benefit of students,” added Ingle. His group has also demanded that the state minister for higher and technical education, Uday Samant, take a stand on the status of fees being charged by colleges, especially when lectures have only been conducted virtually this entire semester.
In November this year, the state government decided to bring back students from classes 9 to 12 back to their schools and colleges in batches so as focus on conducting practical lectures for them. However, with increasing cases of Covid-19 in other states around the same time pushed the government to change it’s stand and instead asked for education institutes to remain shut until December 31, 2020.
{{/usCountry}}In November this year, the state government decided to bring back students from classes 9 to 12 back to their schools and colleges in batches so as focus on conducting practical lectures for them. However, with increasing cases of Covid-19 in other states around the same time pushed the government to change it’s stand and instead asked for education institutes to remain shut until December 31, 2020.
{{/usCountry}}At present, many schools across the state barring Mumbai and Thane have already started bringing students from classes 9 to 12 back to the campus after ensuring that teachers undergo RT-PCR tests to show a negative report and students too needed consent forms signed by their parents before coming back to school.