All Schools To Open From July; 30% Attendance Allowed, Class 1-7 Exempted

As the summer season ends and since the schools have been closed from mid-March every student and their parents are wondering ‘When will the schools reopen?’

The Central Government is planning to re-open the schools zone-wise after the lockdown is lifted. National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT)  in its draft guidelines suggests that in the phased re-opening, only students from classes 8 to 12 will be called in while students in primary, pre-primary and rest of the secondary sections will return after all schools fully reopen.

Read to find out more…

Phased Re-opening of Schools!

This development regarding school reopening comes around 10 days after Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal hinted about similar measures and spoke about the safety guidelines being worked on for both schools and colleges so they can be reopened soon.

As per reports, the approximate date set for reopening schools is sometime in July. 

The official guidelines for reopening schools in India are likely to be released later this week. A final decision will be made when all related ministries health and home affairs. are in agreement.

The Centre is planning to reopen schools in the Green and Orange districts first and that too only for older students while students of classes 1 to 7 and pre-primary classes will need to wait till schools are operating in full swing before they join.

As per reports, younger children will be studying from home for now to make sure they remain safe since very young kids cannot be expected to follow strict rules to ensure their own safety. 

The reports also said that the teachers will be first trained to follow and help others follow the safety protocols. Meanwhile school assemblies wont take place.

Schools Might Conduct Classes With 30% Capacity Only!

The schools will reopen with 30% attendance, social distancing norms and possibly in 2 shifts.

Pokhriyal had also hinted that the schools might reopen with 30% capacity. He went LIVE on Twitter on May 14, to interact with teachers and answer their queries regarding education in COVID-19 lockdown. 

While answering a question, he implied that since social distancing would need to be maintained even when schools reopen, classes might need to be held with just 30% students. He had said, “If social distancing needs to be maintained in a classroom, and if only 30% students are able to come, we need to see what steps need to be taken to bring in a proper system when schools reopen.”

Pokhriyal highlighted, “The lives of teachers and students are more important right now.”

UGC and NCERT Busy Forming Safety Guidelines to Reopen Schools And Colleges!

At the same webinar, Pokhriyal had explained that while the NCERT was deciding on safety guidelines  for schools, the University Grants Commission (UGC) was doing the same for reopening colleges and universities.

The guidelines would be different in all three cases.These guidelines would help reopen schools and colleges in a well-informed and researched manner to ensure student and teacher safety amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

As part of the safety guidelines, teachers will need to wear masks and gloves, thermal scanners will be installed in schools and only two students will sit in three-seaters. Along with this, CCTVs will observe if social distancing rules are being followed.

Furthermore, the guidelines will be printed and put up in several locations in each school and the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) and District magistrate (DM) of each concerned area will further fine-tune the COVID-19 safety guidelines as required.

NCERT has also been asked to create guidelines for academics, and the CBSE syllabus is likely to be further shortened due to time lost because of the pandemic.

Some States Gearing To Conduct Board Exams and Other Exams!

Certain states in India are now taking steps to start getting back to normal life by reopening schools with safety guidelines in place.

The Class 10 and 12 board exams and many other exams have been cancelled and postponed for long. There is an urgent need for children to go back to a routine as staying home in lockdown for such a long period can be damaging for them.

While CBSE board exams would be held from July 1 to July 15, ICSE/ISC exams will begin from July 1 till July 12.

The number of CBSE exam centres has been increased to ensure social distancing and similar measures have been taken by other states as well.

Moreover, CBSE has ensured that no exam centres will be placed in Red zones or containment zones which are at high COVID-19 risk. It has also asked for board exams to be conducted in students’ own schools rather than external exam centres to avoid travelling long distances.

The Kerala board exams or SSC and SSLC exams are starting from May 26 and the state government has listed a few important safety guidelines for the same.