First, second and final year students of all medical colleges and other health institutions across the country resumed their in-person classes yesterday with much enthusiasm after about one and a half years.
All educational institutions, including all 43 public and 70 private medical colleges and about 40 health education institutes, were closed on March 17 last year to curb the spread of Covid-19.
Since then, medical colleges and other institutions had been conducting most of their classes online.
“We conducted academic activities virtually during the long closure. However, students of different batches used to attend practical classes before exams and take exams in person. From now on, all the three batches will attend classes in person every day,” Dr Enayet Hossain, director general of the Directorate General of Medical Education, told The Daily Star yesterday.
He also said they have inoculated all students and teachers against Covid. “We will bring back third and fourth year students to classes gradually.”
At Dhaka Medical College, students attended classes from 9:00am yesterday, maintaining health safety guidelines.
The DMC authorities arranged an orientation class for the first year MBBS students who had been attending their classes virtually since last year.
The students said it was a great day for them.
“We were bored of virtual classes. Today, we joined classes in person for the first time following health safety guidelines. This was a great day for us,” Towhidul Abedin Tanvir, a first-year DMC student from Noakhali, told The Daily Star.
Second-year student Mostafa Anif Faisal said, “We attended classes in person for only two months last year. Since then, we completed our first year courses and had been continuing second-year courses virtually. The wait for in-person classes is over today. It’s a great feeling.”
According to DMC authorities, classes for second year students will be held from 9:00am to 11:00am while the classes for first year students will be held from 11:30am to 1:00pm regularly.
Besides, classes (practical) for the fifth year students will be held in the morning and night shifts regularly.
“We have around 230 students in each session. So we have started in-person classes for the students of three sessions from today [yesterday] ensuring that health safety guidelines are maintained,” DMC Principal Dr Md Titu Miah told The Daily Star.
Third- and fourth-year students have already been attending classes virtually from 8:00am to 9:00pm every day, he added.
Like DMC, first, second, and fifth year students at three other public medical colleges — Shahid Shuhrawardy Medical College, Sir Salimullah Medical College and Mugda Medical College — in the capital also attended their classes in person yesterday.
Similar scenes were seen at the other health institutions across the country yesterday.
Rajshahi Medical College welcomed students to the campus following health rules strictly. They were greeted with flowers and asked to following the health rules, reports our correspondent.
Dr Nawshad Ali, the college principal, said they began in-person classes for first, second and fifth year students initially as 90 percent of them were vaccinated against Covid.
“The firs-year students have received only the first dose. They will be administered the second shot soon,” he said.
Teachers took classes dividing the students in two shifts on the first day, Nawshad said, adding that they would call all students to attend classes in person after observing the situation for a month.
In between classes, college staffers were directed to clean the classrooms with disinfectants.
The RMC has a total 1,100 MBBS and 300 BDS students.
-With The Daily Star input
