Gujarat Teacher Finds Innovative Way To Reduce The Weight of School Bags

Education is extremely important for the growth and all round development of a child. Alongside, it is also very crucial that children do not get over burdened with the academic pressure. In furtherance of the same, the government keeps taking effective steps in order to improvise the situation for the children. According to the Children’s School Bags (Limitation on Weight), Bill of 2006, the weight of a school bag must not exceed more than ten per cent of the child’s body weight.

The bill has also asked the state governments to make such a provision that the children are provided with lockers in schools. Also, the schools must regularly check the weight of the student’s bag and ensure that the students make use of both the straps of the school bag while carrying them. Although this bill had popped up with a lot of expectations in the year 2006, but unfortunately the ground reality did not see any change in this regard. Lately, Shri Anandkumar Khalas, who is 41 years old and is working as the principal of Bhagad Government Primary School, Ahmedabad has effectively ensured that the weight of the school bags is reduced drastically. Usually, students of the primary classes need to carry all text books to school daily. In order to reduce the weight of the bags, Shri Khalas, divided the textbook into ten individual books, each covering a month’s study material. This way the students have to only carry that particular month’s book to school instead of the entire year’s books. Shri Khalas stated that he understood the pain of the students carrying heavy bags, when he saw his little daughter struggling with the bag at the school bus stop. That is when he realized that there is immense need of a reform on that front. He discussed this issue with his fellow teachers and they together came to a decision that they will divide the textbook of each subject into 10 different books and eventually reduce the weight of the school bags. They took the relevant portion from each subject that is to be taught in that month and stitched it together. This way the students have to carry only one consolidated book. The later part of the book consisted of blank pages for classwork.  La Martiniere for Girls situated in Kolkata also follows a similar pattern. They provide the students from Classes 1 to 8 with brief handouts of the topics to be taught in class. For class 9 and above, they have provided lockers in school for students.

By: Anuja Arora

Content: https://www.thebetterindia.com/168955/gujarat-school-bag-weight-gcert-textbook-india/