Encouraged by the good response of teachers and students to the ‘Hello English’ programme, the Kozhikode office of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) has come out with a teacher support journal titled Alo .
Jayakrishnan M., District Project Officer, SSA, says in the foreword that the need for a support journal for teaching English was raised by teachers in the course of a study on the changes brought about by the five-day training programme. Representatives of 15 block resources centres in the district too voiced a similar opinion during a one-day review of ‘Hello English’.
Fear of language
Mithu Thimothy, trainer, urban resource centre, Nadakkavu, who has edited the book, says their effort has been to “burst the bubble” of fear of a foreign language. Around 11 stories have been told using various narrative techniques and there are rhymes and games. It also has five drama scripts catering to the needs of primary school students. The journal showcases an art-integrated learning technique as there are cutouts, pen-pictures, drawings and masks for students. Activities during the ‘Hello English Fest’ conducted in schools across the district and testimonials of teachers, students, and parents too have been included.
The journal was released by J. Prasad, Director, State Council of Educational Research and Training, at a function here on Monday.
The ‘Hello English’ project, launched last year, is aimed at increasing the confidence levels of lower primary school students in using English language, by training their teachers. As many as 983 primary school teachers in Kozhikode district have been trained between November 14, 2016, and February 7 this year.
