June 20: Some two weeks ago, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology announced starting the new academic session virtually for 2021/22 from June 15. And local governments across the country were required to take initiatives to operate classes as school education is under their jurisdiction. However, many such governments are stuck in the whirlpool of confusion about the academic session because the coronavirus pandemic is yet to recede significantly.

The ministry asked the governments to operate classes virtually or through other doable modes besides in-person because of fear of the virus’s transmission, but many students haven’t been able to do that because they lack internet connection to start with, leaving the local governments waiting for the normalcy to prevail . After the ministry’s announcement, many city-based or private schools resumed the academic session virtually, but those in far-flung areas or in urban areas but lacking internet facility have been left behind. That is especially true of the students enrolled in community schools. The problem is so acute that even some local governments are unaware about the academic session.

Chatrapati Pyakurel, Taplejung district’s Fungling Municipality municipal head, said though teachers started going to schools after the announcement, since it is the paddy plantation season, many students in the municipality couldn’t make it. Pyakurel added that operating classes virtually was next-to-impossible because of poor internet connection.

A large number of students of Bharatpur Metropolitan City, like in Fungling, don't have good enough internet access. In a survey conducted by the City last year, only 14 per cent students have internet access and 19 per cent don't have access to any means of communication, even television and radio.

Mahendra Poudel, the City’s education section head, said they were distributing printing worksheet to junior-level students alongside textbooks to address the problems faced by those students who don't have access to any other alternative tools.

According to Poudel, the City is preparing to adopt all alternative teaching-learning modules because of inability to resume in-person classes, for the City is a crowded area.Bal Bahadur Gurung, Dadeldhura district’s Aalitaal Rural Municipality head, said they couldn’t think about new academic session because of incessant rainfall in the area since last one week and that schools there would resume no sooner than the first week of July began. He added that they had little option but to resume in-person classes because the area had no access to internet-connected facility.

The problem of students not being able to learn owing to lack of internet connection in the 21st century is a reminder that we are yet to cater the basic necessities to our students, the country’s future.

Prof. Dr. Bidhya Nath Koirala, an educationist, said many schools and students would have enjoyed internet access by now if the central government was serious to address the issue, but the concerned authorities have failed to act effectively in this direction.

source: risingnepal, 20 june 2021