Teachers gear up for opening of the new academic year

There is still a week for the students to return, but in most schools the academic year for teachers and head of departments has begun with preparatory sessions.

Teachers are equipping themselves with additional skills. They are participating in discussions on how new teaching methodologies can be adopted and setting of goals. In demand are experts in the subject and educational consultant, who help the teachers.

Every academic session is like a new year and the enthusiasm levels are certainly high, say teachers. Lourdez Mercy Juliana, a teacher at Zion Matriculation Higher Secondary School, is planning to keep the English textbook aside for some time at least. Instead, the Class V teacher would be bringing in activity to teach functional English.

“While teaching adjectives, for instance, we could make students sit in groups and make them describe each other, thus making them use new words and learn parts of speech,” says Ms. Juliana about a few new teaching methods she would adopt more effectively.

This year's orientation programmes hold much significance in a majority of schools as the CBSE-affiliated institutions gear up for Continuous and Comprehensive Evaluation (CCE) and the School Education Department with ‘Samacheer Kalvi.' According to the Directorate of School Education, training for Classes I and VI would begin from June second week and be completed by the end of the month. Faculty from the District Institute of Education and Training (DIET) and professors from colleges would be roped in to conduct training, with the new textbooks and curriculum in place.

EZ Vidya, an educational services company, has undertaken short-term training programmes for around 15 schools in and around Chennai this summer.

While training offered is generally more in terms of motivation, this time the company received many requests on CCE training and ways to integrate technology in the classroom.

Revathy Krishnamurthy, a freelance teacher trainer, says her classes at schools are a bridge between textbook and syllabus.

At Kindergarten and Primary classes, it is about integrating science through English or mathematics through English.

Around 85 schools in the State would adopt XSEED, an integrated teacher training and curriculum programme designed by iDiscoveri, into their curriculum to teach social science, science, English and mathematics.

Academicians say it is essential that teachers orient themselves from time to time to reinvent themselves and to make learning more enjoyable. “Content and methodology based training must be offered periodically, especially at the Primary classes to make teaching more joyful,” says S. Subramanian, former lecturer, DIET.