Teachers in J-K's Poonch conduct community classes amid COVID-19 pandemic

Poonch (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], September 5 : With schools across the country closed due to COVID-19, teachers in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch have been running community classes to mitigate the academic loss of the students and ensure that they do not suffer due to prolonged lockdown.
"We have been doing this for the last three months to make use of the time that we have and to ensure that students don't lose precious time. The Director of School Education in Jammu had said that those teachers who were willing to conduct classes in the community are imparting education while following COVID-19 protocol," Suhail, a teacher who has been conducting classes for children in his locality, told ANI.
According to Jalil Khwaja, another teacher who takes community classes in Poonch, students have given a very positive response to the initiative.
"We got a very overwhelming response from the students. We decided that we should start these classes as we did not want the student to lose out on precious months of education. Since we were also free it was a good way to keep ourselves occupied," Khwaja said.
Before entering the classes, teacher sanitised students' hands and all COVID precautionary measures are being taken. The community classes have been going for the last 3-4 months and are helping the students gain lost ground due to COVID-19.
"We are coming here since the lockdown. When we come here, they sanitise our hands and they provide masks also. We are not allowed to enter without masks. Our syllabus is also progressing," he added.
He added, "These classes are not just being conducted in Poonch but in several other places in the state for the last three to four months. I am very glad that despite the lockdown, people are playing their part as educators and fulfilling their responsibilities."