If 2020 got children restless, many have been left frustrated and despairing by 2021. While their classrooms could shift to the virtual space by April 2020, what could not was the warmth of real-time interaction. However, infection and personal losses are also seeing them build their own coping mechanism.
“I am still scared. I don’t know when I’ll go back to school or what the future holds,” says Shaivi Kumar, a Class VIII student of Sri Sri Academy. Shaivi misses the film club in school. That’s where she had learnt film editing. As news of deaths and Covid-related distress poured in steadily, Shaivi turned to her old love for solace. She says, “Every time the phone rang, I would get stressed. That’s when I decided to learn more about film editing and started making documentaries. I did my own research and made two short films, one on The Indian Coffee House and the other on woman power. I am now working on my third film, which is on motherhood.” Shaivi has uploaded her films on social media for viewing and feedback.
When the pandemic struck, Devansh Surana, who is a Class XI student of Birla High School, was ready for a gruelling high school year. Instead, he ended up with more time at home. He says, “I used to play the piano earlier, but since the lockdown I learnt to play the guitar as well. Now I have started making my own music on virtual apps. I have been posting my songs (English and Hindi) on social media. I have followers with whom I interact.”
Devansh, who is currently recovering from a bout of Covid-19 and has also lost his grandmother to the virus, says, “I am seriously considering a career in the music industry given so many virtual platforms and opportunities. Had there been no pandemic I would not have got the time to work on my own music.”
Debdiptta D. Mazumder has also been hammering away at a creation of his own since the pandemic outbreak. The Class XII student of Birla High School, who wants to study engineering at one of the IITs, has used his spare time to make a working model of an eco-friendly car. He says, “I used to miss school and worry about the current situation. My aunt was ailing. I hated missing out on the final years of my school life. To tackle my frustration better, I started researching and designing my own car. I would try out different configurations till I managed to build a working car model that can run on solar cells and air. The Arduino-based prototype can run at a maximum speed of 330 kilometres an hour.” According to Debdiptta, he is now trying to improve the model and hopes to have his own patents and run an automobile company one day.
Debdiptta's model of eco-friendly cars Sourced by The Telegraph
Swara Ghosh’s experience of the lockdown and pandemic is different from Shaivi, Devansh and Debdiptta’s. Swara is three years old, has never seen the inside of a school campus although she is a student of La Martiniere’s Upper Nursery class. She has missed out on playdates and fun activities that kindergarten schooling is about. Says her mother, Devleena G., “She has boundless energy. What kept her going since the pandemic was playtime on the terrace, feeding pigeons.” But even that had to stop when her father got infected this year and her movement was restricted. Swara was left confused, lonely and irritated initially. Gradually, she started taking interest in artwork. “Art started calming her,” says Devleena, who is also a clinical psychologist.
There are many like Swara for whom a new world has opened up through art. Says Sangramjit Bhattacharyya, who is in Class XII of DPS New Town, “Art would have been the last thing on my mind had I been attending normal school now. But I am glad I rediscovered it.”
Class VIII student of Asian International School, Arkadyuti Maiti, built his own resilience through artificial intelligence. He says, “I was lucky to recover from Covid-19 with no complications. I would de-stress by learning more about artificial intelligence. I have managed to build my own chat bot using AI. I plan to learn, tinker and design much more in future.”
Children need a lot of hand-holding during a crisis such as this one. Says Vijaylaxmi Kumar, the principal of Asian International School in Howrah, “Most of them are missing the emotional interactions that schools offer. We realise that children do not often express their emotional needs and, as educators, we are trying to open up various communication channels. I reach out to my children regularly after tracking their attendance for online classes. There are some who have required regular counselling.”
Adds consultant psychologist and lecturer Paromita Mitra Bhaumik, “It is the resilience of children that has kept them going during the pandemic. Most of them are using this time to introspect and learn new things that they actually like.” Bhaumik cautions, “It is the primary schoolchildren who are more vulnerable. They absolutely need their actual playtime. Emotional distress at home is leaving them more confused and irritated than older children.”
