NEW DELHI: Nishant Saxena, 7, was waiting to share a packet of toffees with his friends, whom he would meet after almost two years as schools reopened for all classes in Delhi on Monday. Saxena had woken up at 6 am and got ready for school without any help from his parents.
“My friends and I used to speak over the phone and video call. I hope we can play during the recess like we used to,” said the hopeful student of Class II at a government school in Punjabi Bagh, West Delhi.
Excitement filled school campuses on Monday, as students from primary and junior wings (nursery to Class 8) joined back after an almost two-year-long gap, owing to the pandemic.
Many schools welcomed the primary and junior wings with sweets, chocolates and bright caps.
However, classes are running in hybrid mode, with students being called on a rotational basis to avoid crowding. Each class received N-95 masks and sanitisers. Only one student is allowed per desk, and sharing meals is strictly prohibited.
Amaya Suri, head monitor of Class 4 at a government school in Delhi, said, “We are very excited to see our teachers and friends. We were asked to sanitise our hands at the school gate. We don’t share benches because we have to maintain social distancing.”
Equally overjoyed teachers and school administration said that it’s “overwhelming” to have the children back.
“The past two years have been tough for students, as online teaching can never match up to in-person learning. Many parents had complained of the children feeling depressed being at home. We distributed sweets and caps to the primary wing. Our focus will be on sharing experiences and letting them integrate into the environment,” said a government school teacher, who chose to stay anonymous.
Neha Anand, Class 5 teacher at a Delhi government school, Patparganj, said, “We are focused on creating a bond with our students that they were lacking in virtual learning. Students were energetic and all set for studies too.”
Ahead of the reopening, the Directorate of Education (DoE) issued a directive to all schools that for the first two weeks the focus must be on students’ well-being rather than syllabus.
A senior official said that schools have to focus on attendance, learning level assessment and well-being. “The first two weeks should be on integrating students to the school environment and helping them get ready emotionally for learning.”
The official added that schools have been asked to plan how many students to call each day based on class size.
"One-on-one reading and numeracy assessments will be important activities, on the basis of which teaching and learning activities will be planned.”