Karnataka bans online classes for primary school kids

Karnataka on Wednesday banned online classes for students of kindergarten to Class 5 in primary schools across the state.

"We have banned online classes for children in primary schools in the state as recommended by Nimhans director in a report, which said it should be conducted for kids only above 6 years of age," state Primary and Secondary Education Minister S. Suresh Kumar told reporters here.

The decision was taken following complaints to the Primary and Secondary Education Department by several parents that private schools were allegedly conducting online classes even for kindergarten children.

"We have directed all schools to stop conducting online classes for LKG, UKG and primary school kids with immediate effect. They should also not collect fee for such teaching," Kumar added.

All private schools have also been directed to refrain from increasing any type of fee for the 2020-21 academic year as parents and guardians were reeling under financial burden due to the coronavirus fallout.

The department has already advised both government and private schools across the state not to reopen after summer till further orders due to the extended lockdown guidelines to prevent the Covid-19 spread.

"A committee has been set up to frame guidelines on how to engage students at home and improve their knowledge till normalcy is restored," said Kumar.

The committee, headed by Professor M.K. Sridhar has education experts V.P. Niranjanaradhya and John Vijay Sagar as members.

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