Story-telling sessions, motivational talks, learning through activities, team outing… teachers are having a break from their regular school schedule in some institutions.
As students gear up to face a new academic year, teachers in many schools are either being oriented to new ways to enrich their skills in the classroom or are brushing up the knowledge gained at such classes they attended during the vacation. Increasingly, such in-service training programmes are a good mix of academics, activities and fun.
Twenty-seven science teachers of Kendriya Vidyalaya schools promise to relate science and values better once they are back in the classroom. On Monday, as part of a 12-day in-service training for science teachers from Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai regions, course director T. Mirnalini asked each of them to brainstorm on how they can inculcate values while teaching science?
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“It is not only through social studies or moral science that values can be inculcated, topics in science also are an important medium,” said Ms. Mirnalini, Principal of KV-IIT-Madras. “If you spend 35 minutes teaching a lesson, spend two minutes in values and keep on hammering this to the class,” she told the group.
From topics such as acids, heat, electricity and air, teachers brought out how science and values can be related.
For instance, to make children appreciate diversity, the role of metallic conductors could be compared.
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Jeeva Raghunath, who has been touring schools for the last six weeks to conduct orientation programmes for teachers, says teachers are trained even in life skills. How to incorporate storytelling in teaching methodology and how to bridge the gap between administration and staff are a few aspects she covered.
“Of all, these sessions help teachers to think out-of-the-box,” she adds.
A few schools decided to extend their annual training programme by having it for even the non-teaching staff. A total of 65 non-teaching staff, including cleaners, ayahs, lab assistants and drivers of Shree Niketan Matriculation Higher Secondary School, was part of a 20-day programme. While a spoken English institute helped them hone their language skills, an etiquette session was handled by the management.
“The point of contact of a child does not start in the class — many people are involved — and we thought this would also instil in them a sense of ownership,” said P. Vishnucharan, correspondent of the school.