Duty of teacher to assess children’s requirements, teach them properly: Madras HC
Chennai: Observing that it is the duty of the teachers to assess the requirements of the child and teach accordingly so as to enable the students to understand and grasp the information and lessons and acquire knowledge so as to proceed towards higher education, the Madras high court said while rejecting the plea of a teacher to quash a charge memo issued against her by the district elementary educational officer, Madurai.
Disposing of the petition filed by the teacher Sowpackiavathy, Justice S.M.Subramaniam said as far as the petition on hand was concerned, during the assessment by the educational authority concerned, none of the students had answered in respect of the questions asked by the inspector of schools. Thus, this court was bound to draw a factual inference that the teacher, who taught the students, had not performed her duties and responsibilities properly as per the government orders and the statutes as well as the standard prescribed. Even the minimum information regarding our great nation were not taught to the students. It was painful that a child was unable to answer the least questions asked by the inspector of schools, "This is a classic area, where teachers have committed negligence and dereliction of duty and they are committing a greatest sin against our great nation", the judge added.
The judge said no teacher can take a defence that the students are incapable of listening. Such a general stand can never be accepted. Only on certain exceptional cases, where one or two students, who are affected on account of illness, may not be in a position to understand properly. Otherwise, all the children are capable of understanding and the current generations children are undoubtedly brilliant. The level of understanding may be different from one child to another child. The level of grasping the lessons and information may vary from one child to another child. However, it is duty mandatory on the part of the teachers to concentrate in respect of all such children, who all are having less understanding capability or late understanding of lessons or information, the judge added.
The judge said, "It is the duty of the teacher to understand the mind-set of the children and accordingly, impart education for their future development and for nation building. These children are the backbone of our great nation. They are the future development of our great nation. In the event of not concentrating on the educational policy by the government, then we are losing a future generation, equally we will not be in a position to take our great nation forward towards the developmental activities".
The judge said these teachers should touch their conscience and think about the amount of salary they were receiving from taxpayers, including the parents of those children. These teachers must realize that they were not only performing mere duties and responsibilities, but, they have got a greatest responsibility towards our great nation and they were contributing for the developmental activities of our great nation. Such a level of thinking was to be developed in the minds of the teachers also. "If we are failing to inject such ideas in the minds of the teachers, then undoubtedly, we are loosing the spirit of our educational policy so as to compete in the global level", the judge added.
The judge directed authorities to continue the departmental disciplinary proceedings against the petitioner with reference to the charge memo dated February 5, 2014, and conclude the same within 4 months.
