Government school teachers’ associations in the Capital have raised concerns about the Directorate of Education’s (DoE) plan to carry out teaching-learning activities for students during the summer vacation, noting severe weather conditions won’t be ideal to hold classes and adding that the sessions will eat into their holiday plans, even as officials of the education department said these were necessary to bridge the wide learning gap caused by the pandemic.

Summer vacations in government schools are scheduled from May 11, after which schools will reopen for staff on June 28. A DoE circular on Friday said teaching-learning activities — Mission Buniyaad, classes for those in 10 and 12 and summer camps for classes 3-9 — will be held till June 15, after which teachers have to submit progress cards by June 18.

Teachers groups have written to the DoE, and sent copies of the letter to Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal and deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia.

DoE officials, however, pointed to learning deficits in students due to pandemic-induced school closures and said the special classes are necessary to bridge the gap.

Teachers’ bodies say that DoE had “practically brought an end to the summer vacation” by scheduling classes and activities till June 18, leaving them just 10 days before they report on June 28.

“In May and June, Delhi comes under the grip of an intense heatwave and it is keeping in mind these severe weather conditions that the provision of summer vacation has been envisaged for school children,” said a letter by Loktantrik Adhyapak Manch (signed by C P Singh, president) and Government School Teachers’ Association (signed by Krishan Kumar Phogat, president).

The two bodies said scheduled catch-up classes would require children to commute in the sweltering heat and spend hours in the school in unfavourable weather.

DoE officials familiar with the subject said it was crucial to hold summer camps to make up for the learning deficit created by the pandemic-induced closure of schools over the last two years.

“Evidence suggests that there has been a huge learning gap amid the pandemic in the past two years. To make up for the learning loss, we have organised these summer camps. Moreover, the DoE has taken care of the timings to ensure that classes take place during the morning hours when the heat is not harsh. Teachers can also avail earned leave for their duties,” said the official, who did not wish to be named.