School reopening: Tamil Nadu govt seeks feedback from parents, teachers by January 8

CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu School Education Department has once again decided to seek stakeholders' feedback by the evening of January 8 to decide whether schools can be reopened for students in classes 10 and 12 after the Pongal holidays.

Schools, if reopened, may function six days a  week and no more than 25 students will be allowed to gather in a classroom unless otherwise there are sufficient benches to ensure social distancing.

In a circular to all Chief Education Officers (CEOs) on Monday, School Education Director S Kannappan said the department has been contemplating reopening schools for students in these two classes alone, in a bid to prepare them for public exams. The department has also evolved a draft Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for reopening and has sought feedback on it as well.

The meeting will be headed by the school headmasters or headmistresses from Monday till Friday and feedback will be sought from the school's parents-teachers association and parents of students in Classes 10 and 12, the circular said. "The meeting should be conducted following Covid-19 precautions and SOPs. In case a school has a large number of students, the meeting should be held in shifts," the circular stated.

The schools will collect parents' views on both reopening and the draft SOP and submit the response to the department. The decision on school reopening will be taken based on the feedback, Kannappan said.

The meetings in private and CBSE schools will be monitored by block education officers, district education officers, and block resource trainers.

Highlights from the draft SOP for reopening schools:

1. Six-day work week and no more than 25 students in a classroom
2. Attendance is not mandatory; students can opt for distance learning
3. Wearing mask and physical distancing protocols must be enforced
4. Students need written consent from parents to attend school
5. All students will be provided with Vitamin and Zinc tablets by the Health Department
6. Health profile of students to be collected in the first week
7. Disabled students and students with comorbidities are advised against attending classes
8. Thermal scanning and sanitation facilities should be available on daily arrival; Pulse oximeter should be available on campus
9. Sharing food, stationery, or books will not be allowed
10. Hostels, transport facilities, laboratories, and school premises to be properly disinfected every day