Due to the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), children are affected by physical distancing, quarantines and nationwide school closures.
Some children and young teenagers may be feeling more isolated, anxious, and bored.
The learning has to continue for children to upgrade themselves. As the new academic year has begun but still schools are shut, most of the schools have immediately started online classes or distance learning pre-recorded sessions to ensure that students are engaged.
Many schools are taking efforts in facilitating live classrooms and other such activities to ensure that learning continues without any hurdle. Teachers are also doing their best and have opted for e-learning techniques to keep the learning process going smoothly.
In India, the recent act between the Parents and the School Management for the fee payment has led to many controversies. Parents are signing petitions or approaching court to ban the fee payment. Many Parents have also maligned the school by exposing the fee structure. But before doing this Parents must be clear it is you who has chosen the school according to your budget, so now when school authorities demand a fee then why play the blame game?
Also read: Covid-19 Impact on Higher Education
In any school organization whether big or small there are many other people who are associated with it. Teachers, Ayahs, Clerical staff, Watchman, Drivers etc. They are the ones who are badly affected in this critical time as they also need to feed their families and take care of their children. Every School Management is taking utmost care in paying them their salaries and supporting them in this critical time.We, as a Preschool division conduct Summer Camps during the month of April and May, but this time it was cancelled due to lockdown. But still without income for these months we have paid our Teachers and other staff. Because at this crisis time we only have to support them, can’t leave them to suffer.
Even few Parents had paid us in advance the Summer Camp fee and to those Parents we have fully refunded the fee of the course which we didn’t conduct.
Hope other schools, if they didn’t conduct any activity then should not charge the fees for the lockdown period and also should not hike the fees for the new academic year, because many Parents are also facing job loss or pay cuts. The Parents and School Management should have a coordinated approach in this regard and the issue should be considered sympathetically.
It’s an urge to all those Parents who can afford, to come forward and to pay the fees and to save the lives of many in this distress time. Because School Management, Staff and Parents are inter-related even if one withdraws there will be a huge impact on the other.
Let’s be an example to our children and support the people who shape their future.
On Humanity grounds – Kindness costs nothing. Just a big heart and an open mind!
