'No Computer in School'

Q: Were you involved in any COVID-19 related tasks given by the authorities beyond learning activities?

Teacher: We were not involved in any pandemic-related tasks. All the teachers have been working from home and giving homework to students through online media.

Q: Do you have ICT tools available with you to reach students? What is your sense on children's learning online, and parental ability to monitor their studies?

Teacher: We don’t have a single computer in the school; all the work happens manually. Children were hardly taught how to work on a computer. How could we have taught them, when computers are not available?

Online education is a necessity in current times; there is no other option. The government should focus more on children and parents. Online education is new for all of us, and some are not able to catch up.

Q: Have you received any training on teaching during the pandemic?

Teacher: We have not received any training. We receive instructions from the department on WhatsApp. We also have a WhatsApp group with the parents on which we give homework to the students.

This interview was conducted with a Teacher in Solan, Himachal Pradesh in Hindi on 23 July 2020, and has been translated.