Acts of kindness of panchayat union teachers win over parents

Government schools may see spike in enrolment

By playing the good samaritans through rendering help to villagers in the form of cash and kind to tide over the COVID-19 crisis, teachers of panchayat union primary and middle schools here say they have been able to win over the trust of parents for enhancing enrolment next year.

Due to joblessness, daily labourers, who had been educating their children in English medium nursery schools, find themselves pushed into a situation of evaluating the advantages of shifting their wards to government schools.

Having lost their capacity to pay tidy amounts as monthly fee to nursery schools, parents are now easily approachable, said a teacher of a panchayat union primary school in Tiruverumbur block.

Teachers have contributed their own money for providing essentials to villagers, an official said.

“There is no sign that the nursery school where I admitted my child two years back will be considerate enough to cut down the monthly fee in view of the crisis. The only option left is to shift my child to the panchayat union primary school,” said Muthuselvi, a construction labourer belonging to Suriyur.

There is now a strong reason for the teachers to see the positive side of the COVID-19 lockdown as they were hitherto staring at the eventuality of manpower reduction in the schools due to thin strength of students.

A spurt in enrolment next year would imply that they could remain in their posts in the existing schools without worrying about transfers, a functionary of a teachers' organisation said.

“For instance, surplus teachers from panchayat union primary schools were posted last year in some of the anganwadis schools. If things go well, teachers can shed the fear of dislocation,” he pointed out.

While extending help, the teachers also impress upon the parents the significance of welfare schemes for students such as supply of four sets of uniform, school bag, geometry box, footwear, colour pencils, crayons, atlas, textbooks, notebooks, noon meal, special cash incentive to reduce drop outs and financial assistance to children who have lost their bread winning parents.

Of late, there has been healthy competition among teachers of panchayat union schools to improve their knowledge of English so as to transfer the benefit to students, a headmaster said.