The new academic calendar for schools released by the State School Education Department for the current academic year 2017-18 has drawn flak from the teaching community as well as parents in the district.
They are worried over the continuation of the new school timings for high schools from 9.30 a.m. to 4.45 p.m. instead of the earlier timings from 8.45 a.m. to 4 p.m., the same as schools in Hyderabad. All the schools in Hyderabad would function from 8.45 a.m. to 4 p.m., while the government high schools in the districts would function from 9.30 a.m. to 4.45 p.m.
But the government upper primary schools in the districts would function from 9 a.m. to 4.15 p.m. and the primary schools from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“Why should the government high schools function from 9.30 a.m. to 4.45 p.m. in the districts?” question the teaching community. “Let the new school timings for high schools be made applicable to all the high schools across the state,” they argued.
The new timings would cause a huge trouble for parents who would drop their children school, given heavy traffic during peak hours in all the district headquarters. The school starts at 9.30 a.m., the same time many leave for office and other work. The teachers felt that the earlier timings for the government high schools from 9 a.m. to 3.40 p.m. was helpful to both students and their parents.
Optional holidays
Telangana Rashtra Teachers’ Federation district president M. Prathap Reddy said they would represent to the State government to continue uniform school timings for all the high schools in the districts on par with the schools in Hyderabad. He also urged the government to reconsider its decision on abolishing optional holidays for various festivals.
Summer vacation
Though the State government had announced that the schools would have summer vacation from April 13 to May 31 and reopen from June 1 to ensure the participation of children in Telangana Formation Day celebrations on June 2, the teachers and parents say it would be impossible to reopen the schools in peak summer.
A member of Telangana Gazetted Headmasters’ Association said reopening of schools on June 1 would be impossible as students would not attend classes due to the searing heat wave conditions during that period.
There would be acute shortage of drinking water too which would make it difficult for students to attend schools from June 1, he argued.
