In Delhi, the government school teachers’ associations have objected to the plans of the Directorate of Education (DoE) to hold teaching-learning activities for students during the summer vacation. The teachers have pointed out that the severe heatwave conditions in Delhi are not favourable to hold classes and stressed that the extra classes could foil their holiday plans.
On the other hand, the officials of the education department argued by saying that these classes were important to bridge the learning gap caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
For the unversed, government schools have declared summer holidays for students starting May 11 after which schools will reopen for the staff members on June 28.
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A DoE circular on Friday said teaching-learning activities - Mission Buniyaad, classes for those in 10 and 12, and summer camps for classes 3-9 - will take place till June 15 and teachers will have to submit progress cards of the students by June 18.
Keeping all this in mind, teachers have written to the DoE and have also sent a copy to Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal and deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia.
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"In May and June, Delhi comes under the grip of an intense heatwave and it is keeping in mind these severe weather conditions that the provision of summer vacation has been envisaged for school children," said a letter by Loktantrik Adhyapak Manch (signed by C P Singh, president) and Government School Teachers’ Association (signed by Krishan Kumar Phogat, president).
"Evidence suggests that there has been a huge learning gap amid the pandemic in the past two years. To make up for the learning loss, we have organised these summer camps. Moreover, the DoE has taken care of the timings to ensure that classes take place during the morning hours when the heat is not harsh. Teachers can also avail earned leave for their duties," said an anonymous official.
