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Prioritise school reopening with adherence to Covid norms: WHO scientist
WHO scientist also noted that the impact of the pandemic will last a long time on children's mental, physical and cognitive well-being.
World health organisation's chief scientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan on Tuesday said that reopening of schools must be prioritised while maintaining proper health and hygiene as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to prevail on worrisome levels.
She also noted that the impact of the pandemic will last a long time on children's mental, physical and cognitive well-being. School openings must be prioritised with distancing, masking, avoiding indoor singing and gatherings, hand hygiene and vaccination of all adults," Swaminathan said onTwitter. She also tagged India's NITI Aayog and UNICEF in the tweet. Dr Yasmin Ali Haque, UNICEF Representative in India was also marked.
Earlier on August 6, the senior doctor had cautioned people to not let their guards down against the Covid-19 as social activities started resuming. She also urged people to continue to strictly follow Covid-appropriate behaviour for at least another six months. "I know everybody is tired, everyone wants to meet their family, organise parties. But this is not the time to let down your guard. Let's be careful for another six months. By then, if the vaccination coverage is very high, then things should definitely start improving," the WHO chief scientist had said.
Schools across the country started reopening as the overall nationwide infections started receding after the deadly second wave of Covid-19. Since the beginning of the pandemic last year, classes have been erratic due to the brief closures of schools due to the pandemic. Most schools have also moved on to online education because of the pandemic.
On June 19, the Union education ministry had released the guidelines for parent participation in home-based learning during school closure and beyond.
Former education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank in his tweet said that "in this 'new normal' of the pandemic, considering parents' role as pivotal to children's growth and learning, these Guidelines aim to provide information on the 'why', 'what', and 'how-to' of participation and engagement in supporting children during the school closure, irrespective of their literacy levels. Home is the first school, and parents are the first teachers".
The guidelines on home-based learning emphasise on the need for parents to create a safe and engaging environment and a positive learning environment, have realistic expectations from the child, take care of health and eat healthy, while at the same time having fun with children.
(With agency inputs)
