Chennai
A high-level committee comprising academicians and experts has been constituted by the Tamil Nadu government to look into the issues of academic loss of school children due to the coronavirus threat.
The committee was also asked to seek feedback from the parents and teachers on the possibility of re-opening schools once normality is restored.
A senior official from the School Education Department told DT Next that many parents, in their feedback, have suggested that the government should re-open schools only after the availability of the vaccine to combat the virus.
“Not only parents but several teachers have also opined that vaccine availability is the only solution to allay the fears of parents,” he said, adding that the school management should also ensure availability of vaccine (if found) to all the students.
The official said that even some parents and teachers have advised that the schools could be re-opened only after middle level in September or October.
He also hinted that most of the parents were also against conducting quarterly and half-yearly exams this academic year since it would add more pressure to the students, who will be coming to the schools after a long gap.
According to him, the committee is carefully considering the feedback from the parents and teachers according to the merits and would send a report to the government, which would decide soon.
“I can’t send my son to the school, who is studying in Class 6 in a private school here unless there is a new mechanism such as availability of a vaccine against coronavirus,” T Shalini Sriram, a parent in Nanganallur, said.
Echoing similar views, B Mahesh Kumar, whose daughter studies Class 9 in a government-aided school at Pallavaram, asked “Is there a guarantee whether my child will be safe at school? Unless there is an absolute certainty, it is not advisable to open the institutions.
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