As colleges across the country prepare to reopen their campuses after the lockdown, almost 70% students of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, want their campus reopened soon.
As colleges across the country prepare to reopen their campuses after the lockdown, almost 70% students of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, want their campus reopened soon.
A survey was conducted by Progressive Students’ Forum (PSF), an initiative by the students of TISS for building a democratic and secular space on campus, to understand the impact of online classes on students.
Of the 549 students surveyed across all four campuses—Mumbai, Hyderabad, Tuljapur, Guwahati—only 28.8% said they were comfortable with online classes. More than half respondents said they were not comfortable with online teaching and the rest said they weren’t sure. Institute officials were unavailable for a comment.
“In various parts of our country, discussion regarding reopening campuses is going on. In light of that, PSF decided to conduct a survey to find out the opinion of the general student body about the ongoing mode of education and re-opening of campuses,” said a member of PSF.
Most students (41%) said they wanted the campuses to reopen by next semester and 32% said the institute should reopen by the end of the current semester.
The institute shut down its campuses in March following the Covid-19 outbreak and the subsequent lockdown. Soon after, an online mode of instruction was adopted to continue classes.
While the institute is yet to announce any plans for reopening, the PSF has written to the TISS administration based on the findings of the study. The PSF had suggested a phase-wise reopening of campuses, guidelines for attendance and how to conduct classes while maintaining social distancing norms.
According to the PSF, students in the survey said that accommodation facilities such as hostels must be provided for all the returning students. “In order to reduce congestion, maximum single rooms or not more than two students per room can be ensured. There has to be mandatory separate rooms for high-risk groups,” said PSF in its letter.
Source: Hindustan Times, 13/11/20
