School Bag Policy, 2020

School Bag Policy, 2020

Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Education

In news 

• The Directorate of Education has issued a circular asking schools to follow the new ‘School Bag Policy, 2020’ released by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

Key takeaways 

• According to the circular, schoolteachers should inform the students in advance about the books and notebooks to be brought to school on a particular day. 
• They should frequently check their bags to ensure that they are not carrying unnecessary material.
• The weight of the school bags, as per the policy, should be: (i) 1.6 to 2.2 kg for Classes I and II students, (ii) 1.7 to 2.5 kg for Classes III, IV and V, (iii) 2 to 3 kg for Classes VI and VII, (iv) 2.5 to 4 kg for Class VIII, (v) 2.5 to 4.5 kg for Classes IX and X and (vi) 3.5 to 5 kg for Classes XI and XII.
• The teachers should take the responsibility of checking the weight of school bags of the students every three months on a day selected for the whole class. 
• Any information about heavy bags should be communicated to the parents.
• To reduce the weight of the school bag, the school management should provide quality potable water in sufficient quantity to all the students in the school. 

Do you know? 

• Heavy school bags are a serious threat to the health and well-being of students.
• The heavy school bag can cause damage to vertebral column and knees of the growing children.