By the first week of March, most schools in India were asked to close down till such time as the pandemic situation improves. The lockdown has put many sectors in distress and due to so much distress, it is easy to ignore the needs of children. It can seem that children are physically safe, we are minimizing their chances of them contracting COVID-19 and that this should be enough.
Schools are lifelines
Unfortunately, that is not the case, for a majority of our country’s children school(grade 1 upwards) are safe places, mid-day meals the only means of nutrition, school books- only books and so on. Even for children below the age of 6, Anganwadis (for children below pre-primary grades) is the only source of nutrition and some learning. For children coming from privilege as well, no school means that children experience a slide in learning, widening of learning gap, missing out on socializing among other things. We can also see emotional effects on children, as children miss their teachers, friends, and a familiar structure.
Online Education
However, online education is becoming a debatable topic with some parents favoring it and some parents opposing it. Parents think that schools and teachers are not doing enough during online classes, that syllabus need not be completed during the pandemic, too much screen time, etc. While we debate the effects of serotonin and other feel-good hormones that rise due to screen time or other ill effects of excess screen time, it might not be so easy to ignore some form of online engagement for your child.
“I feel Aurinko’s methodology was really good and is worth appreciating. The kids are spending time with teachers and they have now come to study mode. Personally, I have seen my kids spending less time in front of gadgets after the classes have begun. They have started praying before eating food and they have started eating by themselves as if they are in school and I don’t want the online classes to discontinue,” Pragya Goyal, a parent of an alternate school in Bangalore shared.
“Online schooling ensures my children have some sense of comfort, as they can see their friends and talk about regular subject related topics as opposed to being constantly told don’t touch this, don’t do this, don’t do that, etc.,” says Haripriya, a teacher in a leading school of Bangalore.
Online engagement is perhaps the only tool that teachers and schools have at their disposal currently in order to reach children. Parents can be made partners in learning with continual support from schools and teachers. Such engagements across the spectrum of demographics of schools will ensure that when children come back to school, teachers will not have to deal with a huge learning gap.
Need to Support Schools and Teachers
In addition to all this, we also need to remember that 98% of private schooling is through low-income private schools and medium-income private schools, these schools will shut down without support from parents. For many children who come from economically weaker backgrounds, it will mean an end to education itself and severe hardship. India is already woefully short on providing adequate schooling for its children in elementary, primary, and secondary schools.
“Teachers look forward to ensuring that children progress without learning gaps, we need to remember them and support them. Pay per hour of schooling is not fair and schools and teachers go beyond their call of duty and are continuing to do so with little or no pay. We should support the schools and teachers through these tough times,” says Chetana Keni, a parent coach and founder of Aurinko Academy.
There is a need for parents and schools to meet each other midway, schools can be considerate towards parents and not charge exorbitant fees and parents should be willing to pay fees to support schools to overcome this barrier and become partners for the sake of children.
Thus, a strong case can be made for effective regulation and policy as opposed to a complete ban which is not helpful for anyone.