In surprise move, Rajasthan school vacation to start from May 11

JAIPUR: The state education department on Monday announced summer vacations in both government and private schools from May 11. The circular issued barely a day before the vacation didn't mention the reason for the same, upsetting the schedule of private schools.
In the order, director of secondary education Gaurav Agrawal did not mention if the exams scheduled for the month would be held on their respective dates.
The order further directed the teachers to complete their official work and prepare the results of the final exams on time.
Most of the 35,500 private schools in the state are scheduled to function till May to cover the learning gap that arose from two years of irregular classes due to Covid.
Private schools that are holding classes in May for the first time have termed the order an infringement on their autonomy.
"The state does not have the right to interfere in the administration of non-government schools, which include their right to frame their academic calendar. Schools and teachers are putting their best efforts to bridge the learning gap of students. Why is the government keen to reduce the teaching days and hours mandated by RTE Act," asked Damodar Goyal, president, Society for Unaided Private Schools of Rajasthan.
The abrupt decision came almost 10 days after the government revised the school timing to close on or before 11.30am due to the prevailing heatwave. Several reports have pointed out that learning outcomes — reading, comprehension and mathematics — have gone down due to the loss of classroom teaching.
"They (government) have ruined the academic calendar for May. First, they reduced class timings by 2-3 hours and now they have announced closure of schools at least 16-17 days before the scheduled date. This will only hamper the academic growth of students. I urge them to revise the decision," said Puneet Sharma, an education expert based in Jaipur.
The order has also received the flak from government school teachers for lacking clarity on the reopening of schools.
Rajasthan Primary and Secondary Government Teachers' Association, vice president, Vipin Sharma told TOI, "The government circular didn't say when the government teachers will be on leave. Already teachers' summer vacation has been reduced from 45 days in 2012-13 to 38 days by the former BJP government. Now, it appears that the Congress government wants to bring it down further."
Sources said the summer vacation was being advanced due to the acute power shortage in schools in the state. Many government schools in rural areas are not getting power during school hours, leaving the students suffering in the sweltering heat.