Covid-19 lockdown reports of girls attending online classes released
India Today
Save The Children NGO has released a report of girls understanding online classes. Here's a look at state-wise statistics.
Education has suffered immensely during the period of lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic as not everyone could manage to attend online classes. Around 67 per cent of girls attended online classes in urban slums in Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Telangana, while 56 per cent of girls could not attend recreational activities during the lockdown.
The study by NGO "Save The Children" in February last year also found that 68 per cent of girls, aged between 10 and 18 years, faced challenges in accessing health and nutrition services in these states. Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and Telangana represented the four geographical zones -- east, west, north and south.
The states were selected using a composite measure, including metrics such as incidence of Covid-19, child sex ratio, women getting married before 18 years, annual dropout ratio, and women aged between 15 and 24 years using hygienic methods during the menstrual cycle. In each state, two districts or cities were selected.
During the 2020 lockdown, fear of infection, closure of schools and health centres, long queues, and unavailability of health staff made it difficult for adolescent girls to access health and nutrition services, the report titled 'Wings 2022: World of India's Girls: Spotlight on Adolescent Girls amid Covid-19' read.
After the lockdown, 51 per cent of the adolescent girls continued facing challenges in accessing health services. "Across the four states, one in three girls attended online classes during the lockdown.
Three in four mothers (73 per cent) indicated that the pandemic had adversely impacted their daughter's learning to a large extent," the report stated.
Since the closure of schools, two in five girls (42 per cent) were not contacted by school staff as reported by mothers during the pandemic period. It reduced the opportunities for play and recreation as schools are spaces for girls to engage in extracurricular activities and pursue creative pursuits with their classmates.