'Will do more harm than good': School heads flag extended summer vacation in West Bengal

KOLKATA: The Advanced Society for Headmasters and Headmistresses (ASHH) on Tuesday said the decision to extend the summer vacation would do more harm than good, urging the West Bengal government to let the schools take a call on it. The Education Department has extended summer vacation in state-run schools by 11 days till June 26 due to extreme heat.

"We request you to let the school authorities determine the indispensability of the extension of the ongoing preponed summer vacation in the interest of students and other stakeholders," ASHH general secretary Chandan Kumar Maity said in a statement. While the concern for students was reflected in such a decision, it will do more harm than good to innumerable students, he added. Maity said that the educational institutions have reopened after a gap of two years due to the pandemic and such a prolonged vacation will fail to bridge unsurmountable learning gaps faced by students.

Also Read | Protest by Class 12 students seeking pass marks disrupts traffic flow in West Bengal's Siliguri

The ASSH, which represents the headmasters and headmistresses of state-run and state-aided schools, also flagged the declaration of the schedule for next year's class 10 and 12 board exams, stating that it would be difficult to complete the entire curriculum. An Education Department officer said private schools have been requested to follow the government's decision, but there is a mixed response.

La Martiniere Schools' secretary Supriya Kar said both the boys' and girls' sections will go for online classes till June 26. South Point School's trustee board member Krishna Damani said while classes of the junior section will be held online from June 14 to June 24, offline classes will be held from June 27. Classes in the senior section were already scheduled to start on June 27.