The ‘Inside Districts’ series launched in April 2020 is a one-of-its-kind attempt to capture the experiences of district and Block-level officials, Panchayat functionaries, beneficiaries, and frontline workers, on their challenges and best practices.

This interview was conducted with a parent in Solan, Himachal Pradesh in Hindi on 26 December 2021, and has been translated.

Q. Are children being taught online? If yes, are you satisfied with the education provided through this mode?

Parent: The schools have reopened so teaching is not happening online now. But when children were being taught online, I think they learned very little from it because we also did not have any idea about online classes. I faced a lot of trouble, though I did learn all this later by asking someone. But I believe that children do not learn much online, especially young children.

Q. Have you noticed any change in your child’s interest towards studying since the schools have reopened?

Parent: Firstly, the children have forgotten what they had learned earlier, this is very concerning to me. Though teachers are trying their best to teach children, I think children have forgotten even the basics of Class 2 and 3, like subtraction, division, and reading. In my opinion, the government should first make a plan to cover these basics because teachers constantly face pressure to cover the future syllabus.

Q. Since the school has opened, have you been to the school as a parent to discuss the safety of the children or their learning level with their teachers?

Parent: Yes, I have been to the school many times because I worry about the safety of the children! At the school, we have had discussions with teachers about what measures children should take to avoid COVID-19; the things that we should keep in mind at home to avoid the infection; and how we can cover the basics and concepts children have forgotten.

The biggest concern for me is that now my child has started using mobile phones excessively and it takes a lot of effort to keep him away from the mobile.

More experiences can be found on the dedicated Inside Districts platform.