‘Offline-Online learning, alternate day school, social distancing guidelines, non-contact games and tie-up with local hospitals advised to schools’
Mumbai-headquartered school education processes solution company, Lead School, which also owns six schools, has come up with a handbook on opening of schools and a copy of the same has been submitted to the union ministry of Human Resource Development.
In its recommendations and suggested guidelines, LEAD School has dwelt on how schools will be able to run essential services ranging from school transport, classroom seating, offline-online learning, academic year planning and outdoor activities. It also focuses on health and hygiene and responsibilities of school, teachers, parents and students.
Key suggestions from the Handbook include:
- Adopting cloud based system to help schoolsintegrate online-offline learning
- Alternate Day School or Double Shift School to maintain social distancing and reduce operational cost
- Starting academic year by June end online or increasing academic year duration to avoid learning loss during the year.
- Advanced planning of assessments and staggered evaluations
- Maintaining 6 feet distance in seating through one student per desk or two per medium desk or three per long desk with one empty seat between each student. Similar vacant seating practices to be followed in school transport
- Opting for non-contact games and activities like Yoga, Aerobics, Hopscotch, Athletics or minimal contact games like Badminton, Table Tennis among others
- Staggered lunch breaks and supervised lunch in the classroom for younger students
- Tie-up with local hospital or nursing home; on campus or on call availability of medical attendant
Sumeet Mehta, Cofounder & Chief Executive Officer, said, “For schools, the post-lockdown challenges can be solved when they work along with parents, teachers, education department and local governments to create safe and healthy environment. LEAD School created the roadmap for schools to handle any disruption in operations once the lockdown is over. Such disruptions could include heightened concerns of child and staff safety at school, sudden changes in COVID zones or new outbreak of cases, quarantining of students or teacher due to positive cases and any new government measures on social distancing that may hamper school operations.”
The detailed Handbook can be accessed at https://leadschool.in/post-covid-guide-for-schools.html