only 20 studentsSchools for students of class I to X in the State will reopen on Monday, strictly adhering to COVID-19 protocol. About 70 lakh students studying in 61,000 government, private and aided schools in the State are expected to attend classes.
As per Standard Operating Procedures issued by the government, only 20 students will be allowed to sit in each class and there is no change in school timings. Schools which are not able to accommodate all batches due to space constraint, are permitted to conduct classes on alternate days. Students' attendance to classes is voluntary and with written consent given by their parents. Students with old and comorbid parents/grandparents at home are advised not to attend school. Students with comorbidities will not be allowed to attend school. Regular physical classes for second year Intermediate students will also commence on Monday.
Though Minister for Education Audimulapu Suresh said nearly 95 per cent of teachers were vaccinated, teachers' unions maintained that only 85 per cent of them were administered the first dose of COVID vaccine and 65 per cent of them got two doses.
Municipal Teachers Federation (MTF) president S Ramakrishna said the gap between the first and second doses of vaccine should be reduced to complete vaccination of all teachers at the earliest. Students are eager to attend classes after a 'long vacation'. A section of students at VMRRMCPS at Krishna Lanka in Vijayawada are not able to hold their excitement ever since they came to know that they can go to school from August 16.
Akshaya Krupa, a class IV student, told TNIE that she has faced a lot of problems while attending online classes. "It is not possible for us to get all our doubts cleared in online classes. I have missed my friends a lot as we haven't met for several months," she said.
School headmaster K Sekhar Babu said the student strength is 284 and of them 134 are boys and 150 girls. "None of our students have been infected with COVID. We have taken all measures to ensure safety of children by strictly adhering to COVID protocol," he said.
However, there seems to be confusion among parents with the Education Minister’s statement that there will be only offline classes and no online classes. However, SOPs issued for reopening of schools clearly mention that students' attendance is not compulsory. If so, how will students who do not attend classes due to different reasons, complete their syllabus. Even education officials seem to be uncertain about it.
