If there were no schools?

 If there were no schools? 

 

Image source: Google

Yes! you read it correctly. I am going to talk about “if there were no schools?” which asks for our attention of their existence and their relevance in our society. 

Schools are not only a place for kids to learn formally but also, they support kids' physical, mental, social, and emotional health. Since olden times, a formal education in a formal place, which we called "gurukul" in the olden times and now we call school, has its importance in a civil society. 

This pandemic has made us think what will happen if any such situation occurs in future and we have to close the schools for the kids?

symbolic image: Google

With the advancement of science and technology, these formal places became more creative and attractive in the shape and size in terms of syllabus, curriculum, building structures, dress codes and premises around them. However, this pandemic has made us think what will happen if any such situation occurs in future and we have to close the schools for the kids? Or some other disaster that might not allow the children to access the schools physically. 

On the other hand, there is a group of educators believes that schools should be "deschooled" as they believe that the school is like a prison for the students. 

Deschooling is a term popularized by Ivan Illich in his book Deschooling Society, 1971. According to deschooling, these educators talk about home-schooling and free school as an option of attending the schools and building a network of parents and instructors to help the children in learning at home. They believe it is more comfortable and helpful. 

 

 

Image source: Google

Looking at the past seven months of CORONA, when the whole world is facing lockdown situation due to lurking dangers of coronavirus in all nooks and corners, the schools are closed for teachers and students. And we saw that at the beginning of the lockdown, the announcement of schools closure was received at happy note and all were set to have more time spending with their families. 

Teachers were excited to work with the comfort of being at home. Mothers felt relieved from the obligation to get up early morning and prepare lunchboxes for kids and preparing them for schools. On the other part, students too were excited to have more access to laptops, mobiles and other gadgets and letting the parents operate these devices by their own.

  The students were also now getting exhausted and bored sitting at one place without movement and looking at the screen.

However, gradually this excitement has vanished from all lives. We have started receiving complaints from parents that the kids are not in their control, they are not understanding the concepts very well. At the same time, some subjects which demand laboratory practical understanding were badly affected like physics, chemistry etc. Not only this, but the students are also now getting exhausted and bored sitting at one place without any movement and looking at the screen, where they are supposed to keep on mute while teachers are presenting or explaining something or other students are sharing something, which is definitely a tough task for growing curious minds. 

 

I, myself a teacher, have found my students complaining about boredom, dullness and missing the walking, talking and company of the friends and teachers in the classroom. There are many, who desperately want to resume the classroom teachings and get back to the school premises. 

They want to go back to the school canteens, libraries, galleries filled with their smiling pictures, they are missing the company of their friends and running in the galleries, holding the hands of best friends and walking for the dining areas or playgrounds. They are missing the warmth of swimming pools and their instructors.

Symbolic Image from google

 They are missing their sports teachers, drama teachers and other classes of active engagements in an auditorium or playgrounds. They are missing the birthday celebrations of their buddies in the classrooms and singing the "Happy Birthday to you" song in chorus together. They are missing the drama classes and art galleries which capture their imaginations creatively. They are missing the libraries and gossips with the friends, yes they do, no matter libraries had tags- “Do no talk”, they do, that is their fun, and actually we all had had done that.

 Since they are at home, they have to do double duties, as a house maker they are cooking, serving and taking care of home and family as we are part of a patriarchal society where a woman is supposed to handle these house-chores solely. 

On the other hand, there are teachers and parents, who have their own problems of being at homes and working online simultaneously. The main problem which comes in the light, is that the majority of teachers are females. Since they are at home, they have to do double duties, as a house maker they are cooking, serving and taking care of home and family as we are part of a patriarchal society where a woman is supposed to handle these house-chores solely. Also, due to corona they don’t have their house support staff coming and helping them which has worsened the situation.

 

Image source: Google

Secondly, they have to make classroom plans, set the curriculum according to new demands of online teaching. At the same time, they have to execute those plans in limited and reduced times as online classes duration of classes are reduced.

 Everything is now online, so the families which have more than one kids studying in schools, have problems to provide individual laptops or other gadgets to access the classrooms.

The parents also have their own problems of managing their work and the students classes parallelly. They are now exhausted their working schedules and the kids’ school online. Everything is now online, so the families which have more than one kid studying in schools, have problems to provide individual laptops or other gadgets to access the classrooms. Working parents have more problems as some of them have to share the laptop with their kids and compromise with their works or sometimes need to compromise with child’s education if their own work is important to attend.

 

Image source: Google

Along with all these issues, technological glitches have been major issues in achieving the goal of learning using online platforms. The parents and teachers faced issue of internet connectivity, electricity issues, using mobile data for teaching and learning etc.

 

 Now, its time to reflect on the statement “if there were no schools!” then how we will handle these all situations and issues arise from that. Do we have some alternative ready for the replacements of physical existence of schools?

 

Do we have enough advancements in science and technology that can replace the physical presence of a teacher?

 

Can online platforms, fulfil the needs of a friends’ warmth which a child gets in schools?

 

Are these online platforms or home-schooling able to provide the moral and social behaviours to the students which they learn in the company of other students and teachers?

 

These are some questions from the treasury of the situations that we have to think and answer before we plan the scenario “if there were no schools!”

Let's Reflect together!!

Thank you!

Blog by:

Manju Yadav "Mann"

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