Govt. teachers can now work from home

The School Education Department has said that teachers of government and government-aided schools will not have to come to the campuses from May 1.

While they wait for an announcement to be made about the board exam schedule for Class 12 students, teachers could work from their homes and guide the students, a circular from S. Kannappan, Director, School Education Department, said.

The circular further said teachers handling other classes could help those students with regard to the bridge courses being telecast on Kalvi TV and related resources, by reaching out to them through WhatsApp, phone calls or other digital and alternate modes from home.

For students of other classes, the Department is attempting to bridge the learning gap through bridge courses that are being telecast on Kalvi TV. It had distributed resources, such as workbooks, for the same.

To prepare schools for the next academic year and to discuss the learning levels of the students, Mr. Kannappan said that the teachers might be expected to come to school towards the end of May, and separate instructions for the same would be issued later.

Schools were shut in March 2020 owing to the pandemic, and this year, schools reopened for Classes 9-12 alone. Schools were subsequently shut for students of Classes 9-11 in March, owing to the rising number of COVID-19 cases across the State. Students of Class 12, who were coming to schools, were also asked to stay home after they completed their practical exams last week.

Several teachers had raised concerns about being asked to come to school despite there being no students on campus and had said that the increase in COVID-19 cases was worrying.