Following the Delhi government’s order allowing schools to reopen for students of classes 10 and 12 from January 18, the school administrations have started preparing to keep COVID-19 safety norms in place.
The Delhi government has allowed all schools outside COVID-19 containment zones to reopen for Classes 10 and 12 from January 18 in view of upcoming board exams.
Over 3 lakh students have registered from the Delhi region for the Class 10 CBSE board exam while over 2.5 lakh candidates have registered for the Class 12 exam.
In view of the safety of students amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, schools will have shorter hours and fewer students when classes resume on January 18, reported The Times of India.
According to the report, the schools are planning to make sitting arrangements for only 12-15 students in one classroom, and provide handwashing consoles and sanitisers readily available in the corridors for the students and staff.
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Most of the schools in the national capital are looking to divide the class 10 and 12 students into two batches for each class, as per the report. Each batch will attend school on alternate days, it said.
While ordering to reopen schools after 10 months, the Delhi government has made clear that physical attendance is not compulsory and students will attend schools only with the consent of parents.
The schools have been instructed by the Directorate of Education (DoE) to follow all COVID-19 guidelines when classroom studies resume.
Only schools outside containment zones will be allowed to reopen, the DoE officials said, adding that students, teachers and staffers living in these zones will not be allowed to attend school.
The DoE has clearly directed schools not to hold assemblies and physical outdoor activities. Principals have been asked to guide children not to share books and stationery items.
In talks with the publication, Ameeta Mulla Wattal, principal, Springdales School, Pusa Road, said the students are excited to return.
Wattal said the students of class 10 have not attended a single class this year. In a few months, they will leave school forever, so I am sure many of them will attend classes, she added.
Besides private schools, the government schools are making arrangements for COVID-19 safety on their campuses. The principal of one in east Delhi’s Seemapuri said the school administration has instructed sanitation workers to sanitise the school before and after classes. As the school has a large number of students, teachers will be deployed at the entry and exit points to see that social distancing norms are adequately followed, said the report citing the principal.
The Delhi government had suggested that schools conducted pre-board exams for Class 12 from March 20 to April 15 and Class 10 pre-board exams from April 1 to April 15.
(With inputs from PTI)
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