State government decides to resume physical classes in a phased manner during the next three months
Online classes that started on Monday across state will continue in unsafe zones. Representation picture/Ashish Raje
The state government on Monday decided to allow schools in non-red COVID-19 zones to reopen in a phased manner, starting July. Physical classes will begin first for Stds IX to XII, then in August students of Stds VI toVIII can return to schools and Stds III to V classes will resume in September.
Meanwhile, virtual lessons for students, which started on Monday, in unsafe zones will continue. Several schools in Maharashtra on Monday started teaching online without any government guidelines in place, but henceforth, they may have to abide by some restrictions.
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According to the government-s decision, there will be no online classes for students of Std I and Std II. School education minister Varsha Gaikwad said this decision was taken after considering parents- opinion. For Stds III to V, classes should only be of one hour, and two hours for the rest. Schools have planned classes of two to six hours daily. So, it would be interesting to see whether the aided, partially aided, unaided schools and schools affiliated to other boards comply with guidelines when issued.
The government also stressed that Std I and II students should be told to return to schools only after the respective school managements have reviewed the local situation. The Std XI classes will kick off after the SSC exam results next month.
For online learning, the government has tied up with Tata Sky and Jio to launch a pilot project immediately. Doordarshan and All India Radio will also be roped in for time slots.
The decision was announced on Monday after Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray approved the school-opening schedule at a meeting with the school education department. He said in a press release that the academic session must begin even if the schools are not functional. "People concerned should ensure healthcare where schools start functioning," he said.
Gaikwad didn-t clarify whether her department will release a comprehensive guideline.
It was also decided that the local Corona Committee, which is already in place everywhere, will collaborate with teachers to disinfect classrooms and make other facilities available as most schools expected to start are in the COVID-19-free rural areas.
The teachers and committees will work together to create awareness among the parents as they are expected to be reluctant to send their children back to schools. The teachers and gram pachayats will have to make radios and TV sets available for digital classes and also experiment with webinars and Google classroom.
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