It was August 1, 2021. As palpable was the characteristic subtle-sweetness and humidity in the air due to the onset of the monsoon, so was the excitement in the house. After a long time, my daughters had woken up with smiling faces from their bed at 6 AM, looking forward to the day. For them, it was a day like no other — offline school had begun once again after a long gap.
As a parent, I wondered how long their joy would last. Indeed, it did last for quite a few months, allowing hope to glimmer among the young and their parents alike, until schools were shut down yet again on December 25, 2021 for an expected third wave of the pandemic. As I read the news article on school closure that tried to reason with me, my mind raced through the difficult days kids in India have gone through since the pandemic has begun.
Ever since the fateful month of March 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic struck us, life has never been the same for any individual in the country or beyond — hence, one could only imagine its impact on tender minds.
Initially when the lockdown was imposed, most kids took the closure of schools bravely, their sensitive spirits understanding and perceiving the need of the hour — the biological danger upon the world. However, after months of staying at home, it started getting on their nerves — attending school lying in bed, no proper routine to get ready in the morning, zero mealtime permanency, no movement and neither any enjoyable extra-curricular activities unless you count a video on yoga and its benefits as one! They were at a loss — they simply did not have anything to look forward to. I would often contemplate about how a precious and essential time of their lives had already just gone by sitting at home.
The pandemic, naturally, was completely unexpected, and hence the first and second waves left us with several lessons in their wake, like the economy moving steadily in spite of the havoc wreaked by this virus in our lives. Yet, one often forgets about the most important factor of the future economy — our young generation. Keeping schools and colleges closed for a prolonged period is never going to do them good and probably do irreparable damage to their potential.
There had always been an unspoken charm about offline school; the discipline of getting up early to go to school, learning and growing with one’s friends, peer interaction, project work, council and counsel meets alike, competitions in their truest, positive forms. There is much that students grasp and learn only in offline school. Online school could never offer the same experience, in my opinion.
In Uttarakhand, where we stay, on reopening of the school last year, I observed a tremendous and stark change in the attitude and behaviour of my daughters as they began to walk their familiar paths, literal and metaphorical, yet again. What they learnt in those brief five months stayed with them.
And then, schools were closed yet again.
The drastic change in children on reopening of schools is not just a motherly observation. I am a gynecologist by profession and for the last two years in my practice, I have seen several girls with hormonal problems — irregular meal timing, lack of physical activity in the ‘online mode’ have been incredibly harmful for their mental and physical health. The changes are unmistakable and unmissable.
Girls and boys, especially those going through puberty, are hormonally vibrant and mentally complex. Undergoing significant changes, they have so much to share with their friends. They learn to cope with stress and anxiety in a healthy manner through positive interaction with their friends. No matter how many group chats they have on their phone, the experience of sharing things personally is never the same. I have even seen mothers getting physically and emotionally burdened throughout the pandemic. With children under their noses at all times, they are left with no time for themselves, with tangible friction between parents and their offspring.
I strongly recommend that we as a society and our politicians should consider school as an essential activity. It is of utmost importance for mental and physical growth of children, regardless of age or gender.
India is a vast and beautiful country, with limitless possibilities. We have some great thinkers too. The economy can be revived, jobs can be created, shattered houses can be rebuilt, health infrastructure can be restored, even the most broken of relationships can be mended, but a lost childhood cannot be regained. Ever. Hence, as a doctor-parent, I hope and pray for schools to remain offline now, for the benefit of the child and the family alike.
Dr Sonali Vashishtha is Obstetrician and Gynecologist based in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not represent the stand of this publication.
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