Boinda: The Odisha government has announced the reopening of schools across the state from January 8. This move comes keeping in mind that the board examinations will be conducted from May 3. Schools will be kept open Sundays also to ensure completion of courses in 100 days.
However, there are doubts whether this move of 100 days minimum schooling will be successful at all. Most schools in districts are facing shortage of teachers.
The situation in Kishorenagar block in Angul district can be taken as an example.
There are 15 government schools in this block out of which 11 are facing a scarcity of teachers.
The posts of Science, Arts, Sanskrit and PET teachers are lying vacant at Kishorenagar High School (HS) for a long time. The Bamur Yuvajyoti HS does not have teachers in Science, Arts and Hindi subjects. The situation at Raniakata HS is no different either. Posts of teachers in Sanskrit, Hindi, Art, and Computer Sciences are lying vacant there. Forget teachers, the Angapada Panchayatraj HS does not even have a headmaster.
The other schools facing similar situations are Kadalimunda HS, Urukula Radhakrushna HS, Nakichi Maa Maheshwari Nodal UP School, Ambapala HS, Boinda Ramdeo HS and Phulamba HS. The lack of proper number of teachers has affected online courses also.
“The posts lying vacant as after retirement of teachers they are not being filled. So there is shortage of teachers at these schools. Our children are facing problems in getting online classes also,” observed Ramesh Kumar Behera, a Boinda resident.
When contacted, Sub-Collector, Athmallik, Lalitmohan Behera said the matter of vacant posts will be brought to the notice of the district education officer. But in the meantime the remaining teachers should ensure problem-free education for the students.
The Odisha Secondary School Teachers’ Association (OSSTA) has expressed its concern about the lack of teachers in schools. They are unsure how the education process will roll out under the present circumstances.
OSSTA general secretary Prakash Chandra Mohanty said the government’s SOP regarding the pattern of classes for Class X students is totally impractical. The SOP says one class should not have more than 20 to 25 students. But, there are many such schools that have more than 100 students. In that case, if the SOP is followed, four to five class rooms are required. But most schools don’t have that many teachers to handle four classes at a given time.
“We request the government to fill up the vacant posts before January 8 or give appointment to retired teachers to improve the system,” Mohanty said.
At the same time, the OSSTA has opposed the government’s decision to run schools on Sundays as it may affect the mental balance of the students.
PNN