Academic Planner 2020 and the Challenges Thereof

The school education department in Marchthis year released a new academic planner for educational institutions forcurrent year. The 12 page document was released with a hope to make agovernment school truly Children Centric which is carefully designed to suitthe needs and interests of the students. The academic planner was released aday after the schools across valley reopened after a gap of over seven monthsincluding two month long winter vacation. The schools and higher educationalinstitutions were closed on August 04 last year after Government of India (GoI)abrogated Article 370 from J&K constitution.

Keeping in view the academic losses ofstudents and the challenges faced by the department amid closure of the schoolslast year, the planner was released this year which included various activitiesto achieve the desired goals. Besides academics, the planner has in-depth plansfor co-curriculum activities as well.

   

But a million dollar question is how theplanner is implemented as desired by the department, amid the closure ofeducational institutions in the wake of the nationwide lockdown. Apart from theacademic planner, the department also devised institutional planner for eachschools with an aim to fill the vacuum in the current understanding ofeducation systems and provide the basis for further educational development. Itenvisages to understand the vision, mission and goals of an institution in theplanning process by way of which it can become aware of different plans andorganizing skills required as a school teacher and head of the institution.

While the department was holdingorientation of school heads, teachers and other officers for successfulimplementation of the academic planner, the educational institutions wereclosed followed by the national wide lockdown announced in wake of theCoronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

As part of the policy, a school should havearound 180 working days from November 01 to October 31 next year excludingwinter break, summer break and other scheduled holidays. The academic yearcommences in October month and culminates in November next year. In case ofvalley schools, the students have already lost more than 50 working days in thebeginning of the current academic session. The schools were shut in Novembermonth last year and again continue to remain closed in wake of COVID-19outbreak. Amid these challenging circumstances, it becomes a herculean task forthe department to implement the academic planner successfully.

The prevailing situation has once againthrown up a major challenge for the department to successfully implement theplanner at school level. The academic planner suggests that the schools shouldunderstand the needs of alternative education and integrate it into thecurriculum besides develop in the student and teachers the classroom managementskills.

“Prepare the student and teachers in usingdifferent tools and techniques for continuous and comprehensive evaluation,” itreads.

Amid the crises, it has becomes tough forthe school education department to engage the students with classes intraditional classrooms. While the teachers are trying their best to imparteducation to the students with whatever facilities available to compensate theacademic losses, but it cannot fade away the essence of the traditionalclassroom for the students. The students must be feeling comfortable attendingschool from home but it is very difficult to sit through the lectures becauseof the chances of getting monotonous at times due to which the students willlose their concentration. Already the internet connectivity is not good for allstudents in Valley- especially a major lot of those students living in far offareas without internet facility.

Also, it not possible to maintainteacher-student links in virtual classrooms which becomes one of the majorconcerns if department tries to replace the traditional classroom with thevirtual classrooms. Having said this, amid the prevailing crises setting upvirtual classrooms or engaging students through Zoom application or otherdigital platforms has become the need of the hour despite teachers facingtechnical glitches in the process.

Even if setting up virtual classrooms isbeing treated as a backup process but teaching in a classroom setting is stilla training tool needed for the future, especially as a means of learning how tolead, instruct and engage students in any type of classroom setting. The virtualclassroom cannot replace the traditional classroom because it is by its veryessence or nature not completely real.

Now coming back to academic planner. In theprevailing circumstances it is not possible to think about the implementationof the academic planner but crises management. Amid tough situations, theteachers are collectively working at forefront with sole aim to compensate theacademic losses of students.

Not only the school system, but thelockdown due to COVID-19 has altered life for everyone and affected all themajor social structures. But we should keep our hopes high and be optimisticabout the resumption of the classwork in schools and the implementation of theacademic planner will go on.

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