Teachers to get online training soon

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Shedding its inhibitions in using non-conventional teaching methods, the Education Department is taking the big step and roping in the Internet, audio and video sources, and even cinema to impart significant lessons to teachers.The Department is all set to experiment an innovative online training for teachers using the possibilities of new media as part of equipping them to remain alert against the increasing incidents of sexual and substance abuse among students.So, this time, clippings from the Malayalam movies ‘Sphadikam’, ‘Thanmatra’ and ‘Manikyakkallu’ are also part of teaching modules.  The scene from Sphadikam, where the authoritarian father, played by Thilakan, beats up his son to prove his way and the scene from Manikyakallu where the boy who had drawn the comic caricature of his teacher on the blackboard awaits a slap on his hand but is encouraged by the teacher (played by Prithviraj) who gifts him crayons turn meaningful examples in a lesson.The visual clips have been used in the online module to convey the  need for changes in the approach to students in the changing times.It is as part of extending the helpline for girl students, implemented by the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Kerala Mahila Samkhya Society (KMSS), to 6,000 more schools in the state that the training is being planned. Presently, it is existing in less than 200 schools.Yet in a matter of one year, the helpline programme was able to bring out large number of cases of sexual and substance abuse in schools. More than 25 cases were reported by KMSS by March this year itself. For a change, the training is not to be done by throwing in hundreds of teachers in a large hall and making them listen to hourly lectures.  Instead, teachers will remain in their own places, assemble in the SITs (Satellite Interactive Terminals installed by IT@School in 14 districts) and interact with a team of experts at the main studio here.  The interaction will be shot and aired by the ViCTERS channel. At the same time, teachers from other schools can call at the studio and ask doubts. Further clearance can be made through phone calls or e-mails later.“Only last week, the incident where a shopkeeper had abused dozens of students in Vellanad had given us jitters. Imagine the students were being abused and the teachers in the respective school had no hint about it. This is the situation we want to change, the online training modules are planned likewise,” said SSA trainer Radhakrishnan, who is one of the persons behind the creation of the modules.A team comprising Jasmine (Thrissur), Jaymol (Kottayam), Andrew Mathew (Nilambur), Hari Senthil (Palakkad), Manzoor (Thiruvananthapuram) and Salin (Kozhikode), led by SSA State Programme Officer Karthikeyan, are behind the online training experiment.The 10-day programme aims at equipping teachers to handle topics such as life skills (empathy, communication skills, creative thinking and seven other points), drug abuse, sexual abuse, mental and physical torture and harassment in schools.  The online training has been based on the ‘ente kuttikalum njanum’ handbook brought out by SSA exclusively for help desk training for teachers.