Delhi schools prepare to welcome junior classes students from Monday

Here's how Delhi schools are preparing to reopen schools for students in junior classes.

Schools in Delhi are preparing to welcome junior class students on Monday, despite some parents' reservations about bringing their children to school. Schools reopened for Classes 9 to 12 on Monday (February 7) following a prolonged closure in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, whereas schools will be reopening from nursery class to Class 8 from February.

Shubhi Soni, the head of the Shri Ram Wonder Years school in Rohini said, "We are reopening in a phased manner. Communication through text messages and e-mails are disseminated to the parents."

"We are planning to take learning outside the classes in ventilated areas keeping the weather in mind, adapting instructions and curriculum using outdoor equipment and nature, enhancing experiences with physical activity outdoors - gross motor, sports, and outdoor games," she added further.

"For the first month, we are just planning to let primary students settle down. Some of these students have never entered a school. We are planning different activities for the students," said Amita Sharma the head of the primary wing of a school in East Delhi.

After being briefly reopened, the schools in the city were once again closed on December 28 because of the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic which was driven by the Omicron variant.

While the clause of mandatory parental consent for students to physically attend schools has been dropped by the Central government from its guidelines, leaving the decision to the states, the Delhi government has decided to continue with it.

Further, schools now have the authority to determine the number of students allowed on campus to ensure the following of Covid-19 protocols based on the school's infrastructure, as there is no cap of 50% student strength now.