Amid joy among students and teachers and panic among a section of parents, schools in West Bengal reopened for students of class 9 to Class 12 on Tuesday after the CORONA-19 pandemic forced a lockdown of nearly 20 months due to restrictions. The doors were closed for physical classes. Classes for junior and middle school students will continue in online mode for the time being, even as state education minister B. Basu has said that efforts are on to gradually bring all students back to classes.
Students queued up at school gates in West Bengal since morning as per the schedule announced by the state government to hold classes at different times for secondary and higher secondary classes. This separation was done to reduce the gathering to prevent the spread of CORONA-19.
No Student shall be Compelled to attend Physical Classes:
Teachers and staff welcomed boys and girls with hand sanitizers and thermal guns to check their temperatures and advised them to wear masks at all times throughout school hours. Basu has said that no student will be forced to attend physical classes and it is up to him and his parents to take a decision.
Some parents, though happy at the reopening of schools for physical classes, expressed apprehension whether their children would be following the CORONA safety guidelines as students would be seeing each other and sitting for too long. Afterwards they will be sitting together in classes.
Educational institutions were closed for physical classes in March, 2020, following the announcement of the nationwide CORONA-induced lockdown by the central government. Though the lockdown was later lifted, schools and colleges remained closed due to the pandemic situation in the state.
Colleges and universities also opened their doors to students on Tuesday, though information at some of these institutions have said that different days will be earmarked for different faculties to reduce crowding and mingling on campuses.
As a government school teacher in north Kolkata says, it feels great that the kids will be back in school among us; In institutions like ours, online can never be an equal substitute for face-to-face interaction between students and teachers. Students have been asked not to share their tiffin and follow social distancing norms.
S. Mukherjee, a student of a private school in South Kolkata said – “I am thrilled to be back in school after such a long time, chatting online can never be as good as talking to friends and teachers face to face”.
