THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a bid to address the loss of instructional days in schools owing to the monsoon havoc, the government has proposed shifting year-end vacation in April-May to June-July. Wary of the intense debate such a radical shift would generate in society, the government has initiated a public discussion on the proposal. In a Facebook post, General Education Minister V Sivankutty sought the views of all stakeholders on the proposal.
According to the minister, education experts have repeatedly flagged the loss of instructional days during the school reopening phase in June, when the monsoon sets in in the state. “We do not want an unnecessary furore and protest over the proposal. The government will take a decision only after arriving at a consensus with all stakeholders,” Sivankutty said.
The use of school buildings as relief camps for many days and the declaration of holiday by collectors at the eleventh hour owing to rain havoc in June-July have led to loss of up to 10 instructional days on average in worst-affected districts. According to official statistics, Kerala is among the states with least number of instructional days.
‘Proposal should be implemented only after proper study’
“Kerala has three sets of school exams - two terminal exams and one final exam. At a time when school education has more or less transformed into a semester system with two exams a year, adopting such a model would create additional instructional days in schools,” opined Prof V P Joshith, Head of the Department of Education, Central University of Kerala.
Pro-Left student and teachers’ organisations have stressed on the need for extensive discussions on the matter.
“The proposal involves a thorough restructuring of a system that has been followed for decades. It should be implemented only after a proper scientific study,” said P S Sanjeev, state general secretary, SFI.
D Sudheesh, state president of Kerala School Teachers Association (KSTA), said the organisation welcomes the proposal “positively “but it should be implemented only after consultation with all stakeholders.
“At a time when conducting exams in the afternoon in March is being opposed owing to the summer, the minister wants students to spend the entire day in classrooms in the peak summer months of April and May,” said K P Abdul Majeed, state president of pro-Congress teachers union KPSTA.
“The climatic conditions in Kerala are distinct from those of other states. Any decision on re-scheduling the year-end vacation should be carried out after wide-ranging discussions, keeping in mind the interests of the students,” said Aloysius Xavier, state president, KSU.