The schools in the state can be reopened for the academic 2021-22 in a phased manner based on the approval from the centre and COVID-19 controlling agencies in the country after considering the COVID-19 infection rate and vaccination to be provided for children, General education minister V Sivankutty informed the assembly on Monday.
The Minister said the government will begin an online class for parents at school-level from next month to make sure that their children are not addicted to any online games. "School counselling is being conducted to reduce the stress on students associated with digital classes. But the shortage of counselors is a crisis. Appointing more councilors to address this is under consideration. Teachers who manage the classes should interact directly with the children and find solutions to problems. At the school level too, the committee was formed under the leadership of PTA local bodies and student police cadets. Classes in sign language will also be included to enable digital learning for people with disabilities. With the rapid transition from digital classrooms to online learning methods, the problems faced by children will be solved. Children can communicate directly with teachers and share friendships as friends. Connectivity is the key to switching to online classes. Connectivity problem is acute in Kasargod, Pathanamthitta and Wayanad districts. This will be fixed soon," Sivankutty said.
The school students had to face various physical health issues due to the online education which necessitated due to the pandemic, Sivankutty said in the assembly. "The report by SCERT stated that 36 percent of students suffer headache and neck pain while 28 percent of students suffer eye pain following the over dependence on digital equipment. This is a serious situation in addition to the mental health issues they face," he added. He said efforts are on to encourage the students to do physical exercise for maintaining physical and mental health owing to the present scenario.