Reduce the weight of school bags, CBSE to schools

Heavy school bags are causing many physical and mental problems to our school going kids. Making them carry heavy bags is like torturing them but no one is ready to take responsibility for it. CBSE has issued many guidelines to educate the parents and schools but none of them is ready to understand the health hazards. They all want their kids to learn everything today itself. 

Here are some suggestions to schools and parents to reduce the burden of so called learning !

Suggestions:

• Parents/teachers to ensure that students carry books only according to the time -table.
• School heads and teachers should ensure that senior students bring books according to the time-table, and discourage them from carrying heavy ‘reference’ books or other such materials to school.
• Ensure that the school curriculum supports more activity-based, ICT- supported learning for all the main subjects in all classes, as far as possible.
• Homework is to be ‘staggered’ to prevent overload. Academic co-coordinators/supervisors may monitor this.
• Explore the possibility of block scheduling of subject classes in the class time –table.
• Co-curricular activities should be conducted every day, and scheduled in the time-table accordingly, to ensure the balance of bag weight throughout the academic session.
• School Heads should counsel parents and teachers about developmental issues rising out of children carrying heavy bags to school.
• Restrict the number of text books to the prescribed norms [NCERT], particularly at the primary and upper primary levels.
• Books should not be covered with non-biodegradable plastic sheet.
• Schools may continue the practice of maintaining and keeping books of students up to class II in the school.
• Schools may provide racks with locks in all classrooms, where reference books, sports equipment/uniforms etc can be safely stored without needing to be carried to school
• Set up class libraries in order to promote reading habit.
• Students are to be advised as a part of Health Education, to carry well -designed backpacks correctly, to promote good posture.

The Board recognizes that, maintaining a healthy body for later life, and promoting a balanced approach to life and learning for our students is the top priority. The collaborative effort of all stakeholders will achieve this important goal. Please note that, a large number of activities included in the revised course books closely inter-link learning of concepts with reflective thinking, and students’ taking responsibility for learning inside and outside the classroom. Thus, these textbooks provide freedom to both the teacher and learner to improvise, innovate, create and think beyond the prescribed curricula. Therefore, all School Heads are requested to discuss the issues and alternatives given in the notification with all their stakeholders in order to ensure their effective implementation, without imposing any financial burden on the parents.