64% parents favour starting online classes for young children: Survey

Sixty four per cent of parents and grandparents are in favour of starting online classes for young children, a survey said. However, most want to limit the virtual classes to 2 hours per day, LocalCircles survey also showed. The physical classes currently remain out of bounds for children amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

While online mode of classroom teaching has been currently adopted in most states, it's a non-starter in some others amid fear among parents that it will subject young children to screens. Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh have banned it for under Grade 5 and Maharashtra for under Grade 2.

"31% parents said that the ban should continue, while 49% said online classes should be started but limited to 2 hours per day. 15% said online classes should be started and run for the duration of regular school hours which could be 4-6 hours. 3% were unsure while 5% said it was not applicable to them as they did not have school going children or grandchildren in the family," the survey based on 8,287 responses from 204 districts of the country said.

According to some parents, for children in the marginalised sections of the society, the government should instead look at enabling education through television channels and radio channels. According to some other responses, the corporate social responsibility resources should be utilised for online education by providing incentives to corporates to come forward and enable families and schools in their area with the needed equipment.

Meanwhile, schools and colleges have been shut across the country since March while students and teachers have been forced to take online classes due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown.

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