With a rise in the number of school-going children catching coronavirus in India, especially in Delhi and neighbouring areas, the demand to shut schools and cancel exams is back.

Fearing fundamental learning losses, schools have tightened Covid-19 rules, with most of them bringing back masks before the government mandate and suspending group activities such as morning assemblies and gatherings in closed spaces for seminars among others.

India, which has witnessed one of the biggest school closures in the world due to the pandemic, has only recently reopened campuses.

One in every three children in Classes 1 and 2 has never attended in-person teaching, according to the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) Survey, 2021. Students have been studying in online mode since mid-March, 2020. Now, experts believe that schools should stay open because they were never part of the problem.

“If we analyse the pandemic duration carefully, it is evident that schools have not played a role in the spread of the virus. The risk has been beyond schools; markets, outings, functions and festivities are all platforms where children got exposed. The virus spread irrespective of opening of schools,” believes Naman Jain, Education Expert and Director, Silverline Prestige School, Ghaziabad, who is currently running the school in accordance with strict Covid-19 protocol.

Allowing kids to go to malls and family functions but thinking of shutting down schools is an absurd idea for Dr Ashutosh Singa, additional director of paediatrics at Noida’s Fortis Hospital. Singa says schools should stay open and a decision on closure should be taken after consulting data points.

“Children had milder effects of Covid-19 during all three waves. Most kids have already got natural anti-bodies,” said the doctor, adding: “During the third wave, when schools were shut, we had a lot of kids testing positive for coronavirus. Most of them had got exposed to the virus through an adult at home who was going out.”

Singa also said children are not only facing the fear of catching the coronavirus but are also being pushed into several health issues, including screen addiction and behavioural changes. He said the number of children coming to his hospital due to anxiety-related issues had increased since the onset of the pandemic, while in most kids catching Covid-19, recovery rates are faster and the need for hospitalisation is low.

Schools, too, believe that protection against coronavirus goes beyond the imposition of restrictions on campus. Anshu Mital, principal of Rohini’s MRG School, said: “We are doing everything possible in our capacity to contain the spread of Covid-19. We are also prioritising students’ mental and emotional health by bringing in wellness staff headed by a counsellor to attend to the quandaries of kids and also allay parents’ fears.”

The school is also encouraging kids to get vaccinated. The principal, however, said “trust is a two-sided relationship between the administration and parents” and the school is holding awareness drives with parents to ensure Covid-appropriate behaviour is followed at home too.

Ultimately, schools are where kids belong, said Ameeta Mohan, principal of Amity International School, Pushp Vihar. Mohan says she has held multiple orientations to motivate students as well as parents to attend offline classes as she believes they are beneficial for students and a way to fill learning gaps. Assurance and generating faith among parents and constant follow-up by teachers are being done to reduce absenteeism in school, she said.

“Students are happy to be back on campus and are enjoying studies, activities and meeting their friends. Finally, the corridors are buzzing with laughter and happiness. We are happy to be at school, where we belong,” she said.

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