Conduct physical classes for students unable to cope with online learning: Madras HC

Refusing to ban online classes, the Madras High Court on Wednesday told schools to follow guidelines issued by the Centre and state government or face action. The High Court has also told educational instructions to consider conducting classes for groups of students unable to cope with online classes by asking them to be physically present at school and ensuring adequate safety measures.

A batch of petitions challenging online education came up for hearing before a Bench comprising Justices Sundresh and Hemalatha. The batch of pleas said that the Madras High Court should ban online education since students are exposed to pornographic materials and could damage their eyes due to continual use of mobile phones and laptops.

The counsel appearing for the central government said the time has come to move towards digital learning methods and that safety has been ensured by regulating the time spent in front of screens.

The Tamil Nadu government informed the court that the state will take action if they receive any complaints against schools for failing to follow the rules provided by the state and central government.

The Bench, after hearing the arguments, refused to ban online education. They said the schools must follow the guidelines issued by the state and central government for conducting online classes. The Bench also said that schools must ensure communication between parents and teachers and ordered the district education officers to create a monitoring committee to keep a check. The court also said strict action should be taken against schools refusing to follow the guidelines.

The Bench also stressed on using end-to-end encryption to protect data of children attending the online classes. The court passed the directions while disposing the petitions.