SoBo pre-schools stop online classes
On June 24, FPJ had reported that two schools had virtually begun academic year in violation of the SOP guidelines
A day after The Free Press Journal reported that some pre-schools in the city were conducting online classes despite state government guidelines barring them from doing so, West Wind School at Babulnath stopped online classes, while Sunflower Nursery School in Malabar Hill has clarified that they were `wrapping up the week's work’. Both the schools said they were aware of the government directives prohibiting online classes for children till Class 2, and would make necessary amendments.
On June 24, FPJ had reported that two South Bombay (SoBo) schools West Wind School at Babulnath and Sunflower Nursery School at Malabar Hill had begun the academic year by conducting daily online sessions for children in nursery and pre-primary (kindergarten). This was in violation of the SOP guidelines released by the Maharashtra government on June 15 stating, "There will be no online classes for children from pre-primary to Class 2. These students can learn through educational content on TV and Radio."
On Wednesday, Sunflower Nursery School clarified, "We would like to clarify that we are aware of the directive and are in the process of making the required change. A meeting has been arranged with the parents for the 29th and 30th to discuss this and make plans for July. Meanwhile we were finishing this week’s work."
Sources, meanwhile, revealed that West Wind School has also now stopped online classes. The source said, "West Wind School has stopped online classes. The school conducted one session via Zoom but now there are no online sessions."
According to the state education department, the blanket ban on online classes till Class 2 is to protect children of younger age from online screen time. Varsha Gaikwad, state school education minister, said, "We have curated the guidelines following concerns raised by parents. The children below Class 2 are too young to learn through online classes."
On the other hand, preschools, teachers, educationists and parents are protesting over this blanket ban. Francis Joseph, co-founder of School Leaders' Network (SLN), said, "Instead of banning online classes completely, both the state government and schools should find a middle-ground in order to avoid academic loss of students. At the same time, schools should follow the state government guidelines."