Patna: Studies in Bihar government schools will not come to a complete halt during the summer vacation this year, as students will continue learning from home through a special activity-based education programme introduced by the state education department.
The State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) has prepared special homework modules for nearly 1.70 crore students studying in Classes 1 to 8 across Bihar. Under the initiative, students will continue subject-wise learning from home, while teachers will guide them through both online and offline modes whenever required.
Officials said that after schools reopen, students will undergo detailed revision sessions based on the topics covered during the vacation period. The upcoming quarterly examinations will also be conducted on the basis of the homework and assignments completed during the summer break.
The initiative will involve teachers, tola sevaks, and local educated residents to ensure effective implementation at the grassroots level.
Students to Learn Through Farming and Kitchen-Based Practical Activities
According to the education department, students will receive homework in Hindi, English, Mathematics, Science, and Social Science. Unlike traditional rote-learning methods, the assignments will be practical and activity-oriented.
As part of the programme, students will be asked to interview farmers and prepare reports on agricultural activities such as ploughing, sowing, and harvesting. They will also learn science through everyday household activities, including understanding how milk turns into curd and how oil is extracted from sesame seeds with the help of family members.
The homework modules also include practical applications of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, along with exercises to improve pronunciation skills in Hindi and English.
Teachers to Stay Connected Through Audio and Video Calls
To help students complete their assignments, teachers and tola sevaks will remain available at the local level throughout the vacation period. Students will be able to contact teachers directly over phone calls for guidance.
Teachers will also use audio and video calls to explain difficult topics and answer students’ queries whenever needed.
State Primary Teachers’ Association secretary Anand Mishra said that most teachers in Bihar are committed to providing quality education and are fully prepared to support students under the new system.
Performance Data to Be Recorded Up to State Headquarters
After schools reopen in July, all homework assignments will be evaluated in detail. Officials will prepare class-wise records showing how much work each student completed and how many answers were correct or incorrect.
The data will not only be maintained at the school level but will also be monitored at block, district, and state headquarters levels. Officials said this centralised database will help the education department accurately assess students’ learning levels and formulate future teaching strategies based on the findings.
Why Was This Initiative Introduced?
The initiative comes amid concerns over learning outcomes in Bihar’s government schools. Despite an expenditure of nearly Rs 11,000 per student every month, several surveys have shown that some Class 5 students struggle to read Class 2-level texts, solve three-digit division problems, or pronounce Hindi words correctly.
Officials also pointed out that average student attendance in most government schools remains around 50 percent, despite the recruitment of teachers through the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC).
Bihar currently has around 78,000 government schools and nearly 5.80 lakh teachers across the state.
