Government schools to introduce bridge courses for Classes 1-8 to make up for academic loss

Due to the lockdown, the schools across the State were not able to function since March, and authorities do not have a schedule on reopening the educational institutions as on date. Even after reopening, the students from Classes 1 to 8 who do not have board exams would have fewer academic sessions. This puts the children, especially those from the government and aided schools, at a serious disadvantage when compared to private school students who have been having online classes, pointed out a senior official from the School Education Department.

“So government school students would have very less knowledge in the subjects of their standards. Therefore, to ensure that they have required knowledge, the bridge courses will be introduced before promoting them to the next level,” he told DT Next.

As per the plan, the short-term course would only focus on important topics from the syllabus. “Now, discussions are going on about creating contents for the bridge courses, which could be easily understood by the children, so that they would be confident when promoted to the next class,” the official said. The authorities part of the effort are also getting suggestions from academicians and experts to create the training content for the bridge course, he said, adding that there would not be any test or examination at the end of the course. Teachers would also be trained in conducting bridge courses, said the official, noting that regular classes would be conducted simultaneously. “Course materials will be printed and distributed to all the State-run schools,” he added.