Thread by @IndianExpress

Last week, the Delhi government reopened its schools for all grades after almost two years of closure. On Friday, The Indian Express followed Class II student Mohammed Zaid on his first day back — to understand the challenges a long hiatus in learning could pose.
#schoolsreopen

When 7-year-old Mohammed Zaid left home for his first day of school, he said he could not remember the friends he had in kindergarten before pandemic struck. He only had a memory of a friend named Ayush Kumar, but he had not spoken to him for the almost two years of no school.

Across Delhi, schools reopened for primary and middle school children on February 14 after an almost two-year closure, punctuated by fits and starts of unsuccessful reopening attempts in November 2021.
#schoolsreopen #COVID19

Zaid was excited about #school from the moment he woke up and he eagerly participated in his morning lessons, but his day catapulted to a high when his class teacher, Kiran Vijeran,(Kiran ma’am), took them to the school’s playground for 15 min of play after the first two classes.

When he flopped back on his chair after 15 minutes of frenetic play, he said, “Jhoole pe mazaa aaya… friends ban rahe hai thode thode… Now Aman is my friend. I have made one friend, I’ll make others also…"

Then he remembered that there was a friend whose name he knew. He asked Yash, the boy sitting in front of him, “Dost, inme se Ayush Kumar kaun hai?” He pointed to a boy sitting on the other side of the room. “Achha, woh hai mera dost!” exclaimed Zaid.
#schoolsreopen #schoolopen

Teacher Kiran Vijeran said that like other boys, Zaid is considerably behind where he needs to be to start class III in a little over a month. She added that these children will need foundational work for six months to one year to be able to catch up.
#education #schoolsreopen

Like many of his classmates, Zaid comes from a working-class family. His father Dilshad Ali (41) is a daily wage carpenter and mother Meena (35) does sewing work at home when work comes by. Zaid is the youngest of three siblings. The family of five live in a one-bedroom home.

“The biggest loss for children during the lockdown was felt especially by those from working-class families in a city like Delhi — there were no opportunities to play, their parents are scared of sending them to parks…"
Read the story by @BaruahSukrita
indianexpress.com/article/cities…

Photo feature: A day in the life of a Delhi school student after two years of school shutdown: indianexpress.com/photos/educati…
- 📸 Express images by Amit Mehra.