The Directorate of Education recently issued a directive urging schools to comply with the newly released ‘School Bag Policy, 2020’ endorsed by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). This policy has been enacted to address the issue of students carrying excessively heavy school bags, which could potentially lead to physical harm.
Details of the Circular
According to the circular, teachers are instructed to inform their students beforehand about the books and notebooks that would be required in school on a particular day. Teachers are also asked to inspect the students’ bags frequently to ensure that they are not carrying unnecessary materials. Furthermore, providing potable water in adequate quantity to all the students is indicated as the school management’s responsibility. This is done so that children do not have to carry water bottles from home, further reducing the weight of their bags.
About the School Bag Policy 2020
The School Bag Policy 2020 establishes guidelines concerning homework and the weight of school bags ranging from classes I to XII. As stipulated in the policy, the weight of a school bag should not exceed 10% of a student’s bodyweight from classes I-X. Furthermore, pre-primary students shouldn’t have to carry bags at all.
The policy also dictates rules regarding homework. It recommends no homework for students up to class II, a maximum of two hours of homework per week for classes III to V, one hour per day for classes VI to VIII, and two hours per day for classes IX and above.
Infrastructure Changes in Schools
To facilitate this, schools may need to introduce infrastructural changes like providing lockers right from preschool to senior secondary classes. This would enable students to store their books at school and only bring home what is necessary. Teachers will be responsible for monitoring the weight of the students’ bags every three months, with information concerning over-weight bags communicated to parents.
Additionally, the policy suggests opting for files and thin/light exercise books rather than thick/heavy ones to lessen the load even further.
Concerns of Heavy School Bags
The policy was instituted due to the numerous issues associated with heavy school bags. These include potential physical harm to growing children, including damage to their vertebral column and knees. A heavy backpack can strain neck muscles, leading to headaches, shoulder pain, lower back pain, and neck and arm pain. Over time, it could interfere with a child’s posture, cause body imbalances, and potentially affect the health of the nervous system.
About NCERT
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is an autonomous organization under the Ministry of Education (MoE). Its duties include ensuring quality improvement in school education by conducting and promoting research pertaining to school education, preparing and publishing model textbooks, supplementary material, developing and disseminating innovative educational techniques and practices, and functioning as a nodal agency for achieving the goals of Universalization of Elementary Education.