Continuing education during pandemic…

Vishal Tipramwar

World Teachers' Day was celebrated on October 5 globally. Since 1994, various themes have been given for the celebrations. Theme for this year was "Teachers who are at the centre of the restoration of education and the support that is being given to them." This theme is very apt in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. Through the adversity, new possible ways were opened for imparting education.

In our country with great economic and educational diversity, it was extremely difficult to sustain education in the face of the sudden epidemic. But still, a great numbers of teachers not only continued their education but also survived and expanded. Sensible and active teachers nurtured diversity in education. Online learning facilities are easily available for students in urban areas. But for their counterparts in the rural areas, there is only one source of education available, namely teachers. Keeping this in mind, the teachers even went to the homes of the students and devised new tricks like home teaching, group teaching, school grouping and chain teaching. One school in Maharashtra made whole village as a school by drawing blackboard on all the walls of the every house. In another village, a unique experiment was conducted to teach students through loudspeakers. Neighbourhood katta project was a successful experiment in education by a remote school in Soygaon tehsil. Another remote school like Badakawasti from Sillod tehsil came up with an innovative experiment called Learning Chain for Education. The fact is, teachers never gave up on education.

Sadly, there were instances of society showing intolerance towards teachers during this period. Schools were closed so some dubbed teachers as taking free wages. However, they must realise that it is relatively easy to call and teach students in school. In online mode, it is difficult. As everyone knows, online education is not entirely successful in rural areas. Teachers used WhatsApp for circulating syllabus links. WhatsApp group series like Maharashtra Shikshak Panel and Teacher Broadcast did a great job in bringing education to all. ZP Live Education from Aurangabad revived rural education and made a significant contribution for Zilla Parishad.

A bridge course was conducted for the second and subsequent classes. New materials were not available for the first graders. So, all the active teachers in Aurangabad came together and set up an organization named Smile Foundation. On its inauguration day, action booklet for the students named Anandmala was published. It is a symbol of the teachers’ profound awareness of students. Delivering education in villages and remote areas where the smell of modernity has not yet reached is certainly difficult. Education is considered an unproductive sector. However, teachers are doing the task of creating future intellectual property by educating students. All teachers deserve commendation for their ability to think and act outside the box. Salute to them as they resume offline teaching again.

(The writer is assistant teacher at Zilla Parishad Primary School, Badakwasti,

Sillod tehsil of Aurangabad district).