By- Poviet Kaur
CHANDIGARH: Students of primary classes arrived in government schools of Chandigarh on Monday after almost one and a half years. Some of them were excited, while some, especially those who had never been to school before, tried to adapt. Schools have reopened for primary classes for the first time since the Covid breakout. Children have been studying in online mode so far.
Many schools only called students of classes III and IV and others also called students of classes I and II.
However, thin attendance indicated that parents were taking tentative steps towards normalcy. On the first day, around 200 or 15% of students attended classes in UT government schools. In schools located in main sectors of the city, only about 50 to 100 children turned up.
Principal, GMHS, Sector 29 said, “Attendance for classes I to IV was around 45%. We called all students as we did not expect them all to be present on the first day. We hope that the number of students will increase in the days to come, especially after Diwali.”
Many heads of schools said attendance was low as it was only the first day and parents of many students had not responded to the permission letter. They said more students would come to schools after Diwali.
Principal, GMHS, Sector 25 said, “Attendance on Day 1 was quite low. Around 30% students attended classes. Not many parents have signed consent forms but we hope that in the days to come, attendance will increase gradually.”
The status of students coming to school in private schools is not yet clear. Many schools plan to start primary classes from next week. Renu Puri, principal, Vivek High school said, “We had students of class IV here for classes today and attendance was around 70%. Students of classes I to III will be called on Monday.”
