Teachers oppose full-day schools in summer

Demand that the government revert to old school timings and half-day school

The educational institutions and teachers’ unions have vehemently opposed the State government’s decision to conduct classes full-day school in the peak summer following the advancement of academic calendar by the State Education Department.

Since last few years, the Education Department is advancing the academic calendar and instructing all schools to conduct the classes from March last week. The Department had directed all the schools, both government and private, to start new academic calendar for the year 2017-18 from March 21 and conduct classes up to April 22, the last working day before summer holidays.

No seriousness

Even as the temperature is soaring in February, the Education Department have directed the primary schools to function from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., upper primary schools from 9 a.m. to 4.15 p.m. and high schools from 9.30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The change in school timings from the 8.45 a.m. to 3.45 p.m. in the urban areas and 9.30 a.m. to 4.45 p.m. in the rural areas to new timings 9. 30 a.m. to 5 p.m. since last two years was a wrong decision, a government school headmaster said. With the change of timings from 9.30 a.m. to 5 p.m., the classes were beginning only at 10 a.m. and after lunch there is no seriousness in classes, he said and demanded that the government should revert to old timings and run half-day school in the summer.

Health issues

Democratic Teachers Federation (DTF) State president Raghushankar Reddy said that they had given representations to the government to reintroduce old school timings for effective functioning and benefit of student community. Telangana Rashtra Teachers Federation (TRTF) district president M. Prathap Reddy said that the government should only run half-day schools in view of soaring temperatures.

Full-day schools during summer would adversely affect the students’ health as there is a possibility of sunstroke and there is shortage of drinking water and power supply in many schools, he added. He favoured return to old school timings of 8.45 a.m. to 3.45 p.m. (urban) and 9.30 a.m. to 4.45 p.m. (rural).