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All you need to know about the ‘Swine Flu’

Dear Parents,

It’s that time of the year when most of the children tend to catch common Flu. However, in the current scenario there may be slight chances that it may be the ‘Swine Flu’ that the child may be suffering from.  At SHEMFORD, we would like to answer some of the commonly asked questions, so that you are aware of the precautions and there is no unnecessary panic.

FAQs

How does it spread?

The new ‘Swine Flu’ virus is highly contagious i.e. it spreads from person to person. Children especially under the age of five are more likely to catch this flu (or any other infection) as their immune systems are still maturing. The virus is spread through the droplets that come out of the nose or mouth when someone coughs or sneezes and do not cover their face. If someone is very nearby he/she might breathe them in; or if someone coughs or sneezes into their hand, those droplets and the virus within them are easily transferred to surfaces that the person touches, such as door handles, hand rails, telephones and keyboards. If someone touches these surfaces and touches his/her face, the virus can enter his/her system and he/she can become infected.

What precautions should we take with children to avoid ‘Swine Flu’?

• Washing hands with soap and water can reduce the chance of infection by 30 per cent. Wash hands frequently with soap and water or use alcohol-based hand cleaner when soap and water are not available.
• Clean hard surfaces (like door handles and remote controls) frequently with a normal cleaning product.
• Teach them not to touch their face and mouth, as germs on their hand may find their way into their body.
• If they have a cough or a cold, make sure they use a tissue when they cough or sneeze and then throw it away. Ensure they wash their hands after this also.
• Avoid contact with anyone who is sick, especially with flu-like symptoms.
• If one child has flu like symptoms, while another does not, try to keep them isolated from each other. Do this gently in a way that is fair to both children so that the one with the flu like symptoms does not feel that they are at fault.
• Try to avoid areas that are too crowded where people are breathing very close to your child for e.g. crowded markets, fares, packed temples etc.
• If someone has returned from abroad, go see them or have them visit you after they have spent a week or so in India. This will give time for them to manifest any flu symptoms.

What are the Common Symptoms to identify ‘Swine Flu’?

Symptoms of swine flu are like any other flu. Call your child’s paediatrician immediately if your child has any of the following symptoms and a temperature of 100° F or above or feels hot:

• Tiredness
• Headache
• Runny nose and sneezing
• Sore throat
• Shortness of breath
• Loss of appetite
• Vomiting and diarrhoea
• Aching muscles, limb and joint pain.

Nearly everyone with swine flu has at least two of these symptoms.

What should I do if I see these symptoms in my child?

Don’t panic. You cannot confirm if your child has swine flu just based on these symptoms. As soon as you see the symptoms above, call your child’s paediatrician and inform them that your child’s flu like symptoms before you drop into their clinic. They may want to take precautions to ensure that you do not spread it to other people there. Doctors may offer a rapid flu test, but only Government lab tests can definitively show whether one has got ‘Swine Flu’ or not. While going in for tests in ‘Government Labs’, kindly make sure that yours as well as your child’s face is covered and that he/she does not touch any surfaces there. Thereafter, make sure to wash yours as well as your child’s hands after the visit.

Please do not send your child to SHEMFORD, for at-least 7 to 10 days, if he/she has flu like symptoms such as fever, cough, running nose or difficulty in breathing. It may be the common Flu but it is not worth taking chances as even that is highly contagious. In case it is a Swine Flu, it can be treated with antiviral medications if given in time; so getting your child treated immediately can save your child’s life.

Finally, remember there is no need to panic; we at SHEMFORD are being extra cautious in taking the necessary actions required to stop this flu from spreading further.

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The Educational Research & Training Centre of Shemford Schools

RBI proposes for a new subject on financial management in schools.

Financial management will soon be taught in schools. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recommended the HRD ministry to ask the school boards to commence a subject on financial management in the school curriculum which will further increase students’ understanding about the field. But the final decision is yet to be taken by the HRD ministry.

The financial management subject will cover all the aspects of finance/money as well as provide fundamental ideas on the same so that students can develop interest in the subject and pursue higher studies in future. RBI had sent the proposal to MHRD through Finance Ministry.

The HRD Ministry has also discussed about the proposal with National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) that publishes textbooks and prepares broad curriculum for school students. But NCERT did not like the idea. It said that schools already have subjects like commerce and economics that covers various aspects of financial management. There is no special need to start a new and separate subject for the students.

So let’s wait and watch for the final decision…..

For better management of the widely spread and vast academic coverage of these educational bodies, it is not being considered by the Maharashtra government to split the Pune and Mumbai universities. This is being undertaken in wake of the suggestions given by the National Knowledge Commission or the NKC.

This is a big step which is being thought of in order to improve the levels of teaching and research in the universities and to facilitate better management. Bifurcation or even trifurcation of these universities may take place since the decision has not been taken yet. Only in five districts, the Mumbai University has hundreds of colleges which make it very difficult to administer and control. Similar is the case with the Pune University which has under it three districts and numerous colleges. These proposals however are yet to be approved by the central government. Such decisions could really work to improve the standards of universities and therefore are being considered.

The NKC or the National Knowledge Commission was formed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The main purpose of formation of the NKC was de-linking the undergraduate colleges and establishing their own administrations rather than their being dependent on the universities. This was done to make it possible for universities to focus on researching and also on teaching in a better way.

Startling information has been collected by the National University for Educational Planning and Administration (NUEPA) through the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. This information shows that around 84% primary schools do not have a headmaster or head teachers. This makes about 949 schools out of the 1121 primary schools present in the state which are government schools or aided institutions.

Varying opinions are coming in from different administrational levels in the education department of Goa. The importance of a headmaster or head teacher is being stressed upon to maintain discipline by the former block resource person at SSA Bardez, Narendra Kamat. This however is being refuted by the project director of SSA, P R Nadkarni who says that a headmaster is not necessary for proper functioning of the school. Further, Mr. Nadkarni threw light on the fact that around 70% of primary schools never had a headmaster. The management of these schools is undertaken by higher schools which thereby cut down the need of a head teacher for management.

On this, Mr. Kamat asserted that it is the government schools which are suffering since the government does not provide any head teachers if the student enrolment is below 24 students. This causes multi-tasking in teachers and they have to take up administrative tasks in addition to their teaching. The work of a peon, administrator, teacher, manager and every other function required to be performed has to be done by the teacher itself which causes major disruption in the teaching at school.

Yoga is a regular subject that is taught at the secondary level of the school curriculum. However, it requires support to bring it at equal level with the other subjects of the curriculum. To provide assistance in this task, NCERT now has a plan at the formative stage through which they will provide financial assistance to the yoga training centres and will also provide skilled teachers of yoga so as to train school students.

It is already acknowledged that overall development of the child is the main focus of education and learning. The contribution of Yoga to the physical aspect of development has been recognised already but it has not been give the due importance and some assistance is required to promote it in schools. For this, it is being considered to provide lump sum grant to teachers for undergoing the grooming of teachers at yoga institutes.

The joint director of NCERT will chair the grant-in-aid committee which is to consider this proposal. The main task of this committee will be consideration and approval of the proposals which will then aid for the release of funds to institutions on decided criteria. For follow up, the monitoring of the execution of this scheme will also be taken up by this committee.

Teachers will be trained in the yoga skills according to the specifications that have been made in the National Curriculum Framework, 2005. It would be the respective states that would take up the responsibility of routing the proposal of yoga institutes. The check or monitor will be kept by a committee which will be specially created for this task by the regional institutes of education which will also monitor the functioning of the training programme.

This scheme would be seen to initiate in August 2009 and around 30 teachers will be a part of a single training program. The deputation of teachers for the purpose will also be done by the state governments. The actual programme of training may stretch over to one month. Also, according to the need of the teachers, refresher courses can also be arranged for duration of 21 days.

The 11^th Five Year Plan has been introduced by the University Grants Commission and there have been several considerable changes when it comes to the universities of the central and the state level. These changes are related to the stress on the written examination system, annual result system etc.

The semester system is one of the major changes that might be introduced in the university courses. Since the exam results are delayed and are released after several months of examination, there might occur many loopholes during this time. Academic delay is another effect. To remove this problem and enable gradual assessment of the students, semester system is proposed to be introduced in the central and state universities.

There is a lot of debate on the issue. Highlights are being made by some educationists giving the benefits of semester system which include study all round the year, internal assessment on a continuous mode, twice an year examination, etc. However, some people are also stressing on the already challenging situation when it comes to declaration of results annually. A lot of energy and time will be wasted and this will be an additional challenge for the teachers and the management. Students however are very keen on introduction of the semester system which will be a great way for them to concentrate on their studies and will make them perform better.

The Director of Education, which collaborated with Goa State Infrastructure Development GSID, has started it work to reconstruct the school facilities in the state. According to reports published in the state dailies, GSID has designed interactive classrooms and computer rooms for schools in Goa. It may worth be mentioning here that education infrastructure throughout India needs to be reconstructed and new equipments need to be installed to advance the educational development in the country.

As per the model designed for the schools, pupils will now be facing each other instead of the traditional classroom arrangement of the seats. Classrooms have been designed in such a way that the seating arrangement would be fashioned in a circular design, allowing students to have a visual contact over each other as well the teacher.

The managing Director of SHEMFORD Group of Schools, Mr. Amol Arora has appreciated the idea of modernizing the present day schools. Mr. Arora has participated in a number of workshops that were aimed at providing better means of education in the country.

A comparison between the popular schools in the West and the schools in India reveals that educational infrastructure here is still at the lagging end. As news schools and institutions are being equipped with the necessary equipments and provisions, we hope that the quality of education will improve over the course of time. However, all concerned agencies must be obliged to share the responsibility.

In many cities and suburbs, parents find it very difficult to drop and pick their children from school. It happens mostly for primary and secondary schools which are far off from the residential quarters. Therefore school authorities are obliged to provide the transportation services. But due to surplus population and limited means of transportation, children are dealing with the real brunt as they are loaded in the school and private vehicles.

In metropolitan cities, school vans and private vans are overloaded with children, many of whom are just kids. A small van which can carry about 8 children comfortably, can be seen carrying more than 12 children and in worst possible cases more than 16. This leaves very little space for the children to sit comfortably in the vehicle.

Private vehicle owners go a step ahead as they are paid monthly charges by the parents. More children in the vehicle mean more money. Parents who cannot afford to hire a cab or provide for transportation are thus compelled to go for these shared vans. Poor children can’t even complain or argue for their case.

As per reports published on a website, the ministry of primary and secondary education in Bangalore will go ahead with the issuance of a notice to check the overloaded school vans, failing which the government will take an action against the perpetrators.