Government teachers bring education home to students in Rajasthan village

Giving impetus to education during the coronavirus pandemic, teachers of six government schools in a remote village in Jodhpur district are going door-to-door to ensure their students' learning process continues unabated.

The parents and students of these schools, which come under the panchayat elementary education office (PEEO) in Berdon ka Bas village in Osian subdivision of the district, are delighted to see these teachers turning up to their homes to hand over study materials.

On the lines of the practice followed every year called “praveshotsav” to increase enrolments, the teachers are going under the banner of 'School Chale Ghar Ki Aur' (Schools to Homes) to each student's house to distribute self-prepared study materials and books to them while also collecting old books.

The teachers distribute the material from Monday to Friday, while Saturday is designated for checking the homework and preparing the fresh set of study materials to be distributed the following week.

Bijani, who is the principal of the Senior Secondary School in Berdon ka Bas, is the brainchild of this plan that was initially conceived for her school only but later got expanded during a meeting of PEEO and headmasters of three upper primary and two primary schools as they also evinced interest to join the mission.

“The idea was triggered by the limitations of the students of government schools in rural areas to access online education. They do not have the required resources for online studies, in absence of which, they were set to suffer," said Bijani.

If the students do not even have chappals to wear, how could they be expected to access online education, she remarked.

“In such a situation, when neither online education is possible for them nor physical education due to the closure of schools, we decided to go to them and provide all the support that they require to continue their studies until the schools are reopened," the principal added.

The staff of the schools goes to the houses of students from Classes 1 to 8 with the study material and books, while the parents and students from Classes 9 to 12 are being asked to collect the same from the school.

According to a senior english teacher Om Prakash, almost all the 265 students have got the study materials under this mission, which has received a tremendous response from the parents and students alike.

He said that the move has also brought in positive results as the new enrolments have been increasing after seeing the devotion of the work of the government school teachers.

A parent, Manglaram, whose son is in Class 10, said that he was apprehensive of his studies earlier due to the pandemic and thought that this year would be wasted.

“Now, not only me but other villagers were overwhelmed with the move of the school teachers. Our respect for them has risen further for their concern towards the studies of our children," said Manglaram, who is a farmer.

It is not Manglaram alone, but many in Berdon ka Bas and surrounding areas, who have been appreciating these teachers for going beyond their call of duty and ensure that these students, who could hardly align themselves with online studies, continue with their education.

Chetan Ram, a Class 12 student, said, “We had assumed that this year would go waste in absence of the classes and study material. But we are thankful to our teachers for striving hard to make sure that we continue with our studies without any loss." In fact, some teachers have been dipping into their pockets to meet the expenses required in the exercise from various resources when it was required.

Bijani said that they review the work every week and try to resolve the problems so that no one is left out of the purview.

She cited some challenges that they have faced like absence of some students from their homes, long distances and inaccessibility of some houses from the roads but have not.

(Photo credit for representation: PTI)