With the announcement of reopening of schools for class 6 and 7 students in Odisha, educational institutions are bracing up to conduct physical classes as per the government’s Covid-19 norms. However, the big question remains are all schools in Odisha well prepared to deal with the ‘new normal’?
The State School and Mass Education Minister Samir Ranjan Dash on Wednesday informed that schools for Class 6 and Class 7 students will reopen from November 15. He even stressed on the conduct of offline classes while strictly adhering to the Covid guidelines.
However, strict adherence to Covid norms like social distancing when students will flock in large numbers to schools, especially in the rural belt, is one of the biggest areas of concern. Can schools make the 11-12-year-old students understand the very motive behind keeping a safe distance from one another?
Apart from COVID, the issue of shortage of classrooms may also crop up in rural Odisha following the reopening of schools. For instance, Maliput Project Upper Primary School in Koraput district has a total of four classrooms for class 1 to 8 students. Hence, can the standard operating procedures be followed in this school?
While teachers seem to be worried about infrastructure issues, students in the rural region who witnessed a tough time during online classes are quite happy after the schools’ reopening announcement.
“We have a total of 330 students for classes 6, 7 and 8. But, there are only four classrooms where the students can sit. We have to face a lot of problems. And, it will be difficult to conduct the classes as per the SOP of the government,” said P Janki Headmistress of Project Upper Primary School, Maliput under Lamtaput block.
“Sanitisation is underway on a war footing. Stern action will be taken in case of any lacuna,” said Purna Chandra Sethi, District Project Coordinator, Samagra Siksha Abhiyan, Keonjhar.
Udaya Bag, a student of Kadamdwar Sahi school, said, “I am happy that our schools will reopen from November 15. As I don’t have a mobile phone, I failed to attend online classes. Now, I can go to school and meet my friends.”