The Minister for Social Welfare H.C. Mahadevappa said here on Sunday, September 24, that teachers of residential schools should focus on imparting quality education to students.
He was speaking at a workshop organised by the Mysuru district administration, Zilla Panchayat, Department of Social Welfare etc. for principals of government residential schools.
The Minister said a majority of the students in such institutions are those from the economically weaker and socially backward section of society and education was the means to enhance their socio-economic conditions. Hence, the focus should be on imparting quality education, said Mr. Mahadevappa.
The Minister said residential schools were providing a better quality of education compared to conventional schools but efforts should be made to further shore up the standards.
He said knowledge is not the monopoly of any individual or community and many of those occupying positions of responsibility in society hail from humble background due to education. Given the possibilities of what education can do to transform individuals, communities and society, the government is committed to provide quality education to those from the weaker section who have been historically deprived of education, Mr. Mahadevappa added. Hence, the responsibility of the teachers is also immense and they should be steadfast in their work, he said.
Mr. Mahadevappa said that education is the right of every child and it is also mandated in the Constitution. ‘’Baba Saheb Ambedkar believed that scientific education will help infuse rational thinking and lead people from darkness to light. Hence, it was imperative to provide quality education that was also scientific and it will shape the thought process of children and enable them to be more responsible citizens in future’’, he added.
The participating teachers and principals were told that modern world was highly competitive and teachers should identify the weakness of students and help them overcome their lacunae. In addition to education, the quality of food was also highlighted by the minister who said that nutritional aspect should not be ignored. The residential schools were also instructed to cultivate their own vegetables to the extent possible under organic or natural conditions.
The ZP CEO K.M. Gayatri said that hostels were the homes of children and the hostel wardens had the additional responsibility of shaping the personality of children. D. Thimmaiah, MLC, officials from the social welfare department, resource persons for the workshop and others were present.
