Lok Sabha Question No. 1129 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-02-08
Subject: Re-opening of School
Ministry: Education
Asked by: Sunil Dattatray Tatkare, Supriya Sadanand Sule, Amol Ramsing Kolhe, Subhash Ramrao Bhamre, Kuldeep Rai Sharma, DNV Senthilkumar. S.

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

## DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION AND LITERACY LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1129 TO BE ANSWERED ON 08.02.2021

## Re-opening of Schools

1129. SHRI SUNIL DATTATRAY TATKARE:

SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SULE:

DR. AMOL RAMSING KOLHE:

DR. SUBHASH RAMRAO BHAMRE:

SHRI KULDEEP RAI SHARMA:

DR. DNV SENTHILKUMAR S.:

Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the schools in many parts of the country have reopened after closure due to Corona Virus pandemic and if so, the details thereof State/UT-wise;
- (b) whether the Government has issued any guidelines/SOP to States in this regard and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether online teaching of students due to Covid 19 pandemic has been successful and if so, the details there;
- (d) whether the Government has made any assessment to study the impact of online teaching on students and parents if so, the details of findings of the assessments; and
- (e) whether the Government has directed other States to reopen schools at least for students of class 9 to 12 considering their academic career and if so, the details thereof and if not, the corrective steps taken/proposed to be taken in this regard?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF EDUCATION (SHRI RAMESH POKHRIYAL 'NISHANK')

- (a) & (b) Ministry of home Affairs (MHA) vide their order No. 40-3/2020-DM-I (A) dated 30th September, 2020 has stated that State/UT Governments may take a decision in respect of re-opening of schools and coaching institutions, after 15th October, 2020, in a graded manner, The decision shall be taken in consultation with the respective school/institution management, based on their assessment of the situation.

The Department of School Education and Literacy has issued detailed SOP/guidelines regarding health and safety precautions for reopening of schools after issue of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) guidelines for unlock-5, on 5 th October, 2020. Part I of these guidelines refers to the health and safety aspects for reopening schools. These are based on the prevailing instructions of Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and Ministry of Education with regard to health and safety protocols, and are to be implemented by adopting/adapting in accordance with the local situation in all states/UTs. Part-II of the Guidelines refers to learning with physical/social distancing and the academic aspects that are to be taken care of with regard to the delivery of education, such as, curriculum transactions, instructional load, timetables, assessment, etc. after schools reopen. These guidelines can be accessed at :

https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload\_files/mhrd/files/SOP\_Guidelines\_for\_reopening \_schools\_0.pdf

The State-UT wise status of re-opening of schools after closure due to Corona pandemic is at Annexure.

(c) & (d) The Ministry of Education through National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) had conducted a survey related to online teaching learning in Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan(KVS), Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti(NVS) and Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools. As per the survey, the findings revealed that about 60-70% of the participants (students, teachers, parents and school principals across KVS, NVS and CBSE shared that teaching and learning during COVID-19 period was joyful and satisfactory. About 20-30% stakeholders shared that they had difficult experience and about 10-20% said that it was burdensome for them. The details of the survey and findings are given in Chapter - 3 of the Learning Enhancement guidelines, which may be accessed at the following links:

1. https://www.mhrd.gov.in/sites/upload\_files/mhrd/files/Learning\_Enhancement\_0.pdf
2. https://seshagun.gov.in/sites/default/files/update/Learning\_Enhancement.pdf
3. https://ncert.nic.in/pdf/announcement/Learning\_%20Enhancement\_Guidelines.pdf
4. (e) It is for the concerned State and UT Government to decide about the re-opening of schools after COVID pandemic, based on their assessment of the situation as per MHA guidelines.

The following corrective steps have been taken by the Ministry of Education with a view to addressing the issues related to gaps and/or loss of learning among students, during and after the lockdown, NCERT has prepared 'Alternative Academic Calendar' and 'Students' Learning Enhancement Guidelines' with a focus on learning outcome. The guidelines suggest models for the following three types of scenarios:-

- I. Learning Enhancement during COVID-19 for students without digital devices.
- II. Learning Enhancement during COVID-19 for students with limited accessibility to digital devices.
- III. Learning Enhancement during COVID-19 for students with digital devices.

A multi-pronged approach has been adopted leveraging technology to reach the students. Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing (DIKSHA), Study Webs of Activelearning for Young Aspiring Minds(SWAYAM), SWAYAM PRABHA, MANODARPAN for psychological support, PRAGYATA Guidelines on Digital Education, e-textbooks etc. are used by schools, colleges and universities to provide learning facilities. Where the internet facility is not available, SWAYAM PRABHA is used to impart education through TV. Community Radio Stations and a podcast called Shiksha Vani of CBSE is also effectively used in remote areas where online classes are difficult.

The Ministry has also issued the guidelines dated 13 th July, 2020 for continuing education of children of migrant labourers to prevent loss of learning or academic year. Further, for Rationalisation of Syllabus for Summative Examinations, CBSE has reduced the syllabi only for the purpose of examinations to the extent of thirty percent. This has been done in view of change in the mode of conduct of classroom transaction which is new both for parents and teachers.

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ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN PART (a) & (b) OF THE REPLY TO LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1129 TO BE ANSWERED ON 08.02.2021 ASKED BY SHRI SUNIL DATTATRAY TATKARE, SHRIMATI SUPRIYA SULE, DR. AMOL RAMSING KOLHE, DR. SUBHASH RAMRAO BHAMRE, SHRI KULDEEP RAI SHARMA and DR. DNV SENTHILKUMAR S. REGARDING REOPENING OF SCHOOLS

State /UT-wise status of Re-opening of Schools (as on 04.02.2021)

|   S. No. | States and UTs           | Whether Schools are reopening / reopened   | Remarks                                                                                                 |
|----------|--------------------------|--------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|        1 | Andaman &Nicobar Islands | Yes                                        | 10th to 12th                                                                                            |
|        2 | Andhra Pradesh           | Yes                                        | 7 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|        3 | Arunachal Pradesh        | Yes                                        | 8th to 12 th                                                                                            |
|        4 | Assam                    | Yes                                        | 6 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|        5 | Bihar                    | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|        6 | Chandigarh               | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|        7 | Chhattisgarh             | No                                         | -                                                                                                       |
|        8 | Delhi                    | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th (9 th and 11 th will resume from 5 th February)                                           |
|        9 | Dnd - Dnh                | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       10 | Goa                      | Yes                                        | 10 th & 12 th                                                                                           |
|       11 | Gujarat                  | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       12 | Haryana                  | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       13 | Himachal Pradesh         | Yes                                        | 5 th , 8 th to 12 th from 1 st Feb 2021(Summer Closing schools) From 15 th Feb (Winter Closing schools) |
|       14 | Jammu and Kashmir        | Yes                                        | 1 st to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       15 | Jharkhand                | No                                         | -                                                                                                       |
|       16 | Karnataka                | Yes                                        | 10 th & 12 th                                                                                           |
|       17 | Kerala                   | Yes                                        | 10 th & 12 th                                                                                           |
|       18 | Ladakh                   | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       19 | Lakshadweep              | Yes                                        | 1 st to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       20 | Madhya Pradesh           | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       21 | Maharashtra              | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       22 | Manipur                  | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       23 | Meghalaya                | Yes                                        | 6 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       24 | Mizoram                  | Yes                                        | 10 th & 12 th                                                                                           |
|       25 | Nagaland                 | Yes                                        | 9th - 12 th (Partial)                                                                                   |
|       26 | Odisha                   | No                                         | -                                                                                                       |
|       27 | Puducherry               | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       28 | Punjab                   | Yes                                        | 1 st to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       29 | Rajasthan                | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       30 | Sikkim                   | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       31 | Tamil Nadu               | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       32 | Telangana                | No                                         | -                                                                                                       |
|       33 | Tripura                  | Yes                                        | 5 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       34 | Uttar Pradesh            | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th                                                                                           |
|       35 | Uttarakhand              | Yes                                        | 6 th to 12 th (Opening from 08 th Feb 2021)                                                             |
|       36 | West Bengal              | Yes                                        | 9 th to 12 th (Opening from 12 th Feb,2021 )                                                            |

Dnd - Dnh- Daman and Diu- Dadar and Nagar Haveli