Teachers must play a major role in keeping depression and disappointment away from their young students, said Aruna Sivakami, Vice-Chancellor, Mother Teresa Women’s University, here on Friday.
She said that school teachers are “creators of minds” since they deal with children daily and hence the teaching fraternity must work with interest by combining both heart and mind. She also emphasised that teachers should not try to escape from work by saying excuses.
“A student must not feel depressed or disappointed at any point of time. Teachers must show love and affection and not threaten their students,” she said while speaking at a brainstorming session on “girl-friendly schooling practices in secondary schools in Tamil Nadu,” at Mother Teresa Women’s University Research and Extension Centre here.
She urged teachers to look at holistic development of their students instead of just teaching a subject and taking routine classes. Dr. Sivakami said that girl-friendly schooling practices were an important component of school education and that included providing good toilet facilities for girl students.
The Vice-Chancellor spoke on the efforts she had taken to get new posts sanctioned for the women’s university by making repeated representations to the State Government.
T. R. Jayabalan, Secretary, Madurai Multipurpose Social Welfare Society, and D. C. Hilda Devi, Reader in Sociology, interacted with teachers and exchanged views on problems and issues of girls’ schooling. M. Punithambal, centre Director, spoke.
