With close to 1,800 persons falling prey to COVID-19 since March 2020 in the district, the highest in the State, and the threat of a third wave of the pandemic looming large, a majority of the teachers in the government sector vehemently but silently oppose the move to reopen schools but many employed in private schools, who have not been getting paid or have suffered a high pay cut, seem to be desperately waiting for this to happen.
“When our chances of finding an alternative job are bleak, and our families are living in penury, who is bothered about the COVID third wave?” asks a woman who teaches in a private school in Chittoor. She has not been paid since April this year.
Though almost all teachers in the government sector have been given two doses of the vaccine, many private teachers, especially those from small schools, haven’t been inoculated yet.
On the other hand, government schools have registered a sudden spike in new admissions since June in almost all classes. A government high school in Srikalahasti mandal saw 79 new admissions in June and July. “With limited seating capacity, ensuring physical distance among children is next to impossible, though officials are insisting on it. We can’t run a class with children of tender age wearing face masks for hours together. Their playful moods are uncontrollable and they run a high risk of getting infected,” says a headmaster.
‘No loss in waiting’
Parents in urban areas are mostly opposed to the reopening of schools. “Already, the government has waited for one and a half years. Whether or not there will be a third wave will be known in a month or so. There will be no big loss in waiting till then,” feels Subramanyam, a cycle mechanic at Sannidhi street in Srikalahasti, who has two grandchildren.
Rural areas, however, present a contrasting picture. “Earning a living is more important and we need to overcome the fear of the pandemic. Compared to the children in urban areas, our children are turning lazy and slowly losing their interest in studies in the absence of access to online teaching. There is a need to reopen schools,” says a parent Dhananjay of Nagari.
