Corona hit various ages groups around us. Our daily lifestyle took a 360-degree turn, including the life of our little kids. The general routine for the kids was to get up early, get dressed in the morning and depart for their school. Playing in a park, celebrating a birthday together in class or conversing with friends seems like a dream for the kids nowadays.
Earlier, we used to keep our children away from the television screens and mobile, not only to protect their eyes but also to develop their social and interaction skills. As schools and colleges are still closed, the new trend of online classes has emerged for the schools to complete their curriculum. There is an online group on Zoom or Microsoft apps, wherein all students are added, daily morning classes are scheduled four 2 to 3 hours, where the students have to sit in front of it and listen to the teacher.
It is very difficult to reason with kids (especially 3-5yr olds) as to why do they have to attend these sessions and to tell them that schools will not reopen in the near future. Usage of mobiles, laptops and WiFi among kids has increased so much that it has taken a toll on their health. There is a mental pressure on the kids to complete all the classwork given in online classes with the same speed as other classmates are performing.
It is humanly not possible to look at all the kids together on just a screen. If a student’s work is not acknowledged by the teacher, that kid feels left behind and loses interest in attending the session. The pressure to buck up and perform as other classmates if affecting the mindset of the little kids, and making them less confident about themselves. Staying at home and not being able to play with friends is also impacting their social interaction skills.
Parents also have a schedule of going to work every day or getting household chores done in the morning, and with online classes going on, parents are suffering and trying to juggle work in between which is causing inconvenience to the child as well. A parent has to sit through all class sessions, go through them along with the child and provide all the stationary as directed by the teacher, even if a lockdown is going on.
Overall, our education ministry should understand the mindset of our little kids and ban online classes for at least the age group of 3-5 years, so that they can relax mentally and be free of the performance pressure.