Teachers’ Day Today Study Is Fun: They Use Songs, Matchboxes As Teaching Tools  

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): For five school teachers from Madhya Pradesh, it is going beyond their call of duty by making science and mathematics fun to learn. President Droupadi Murmu will present National Teachers' Award to them at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on Teachers’ Day on Tuesday. They are among 50 school teachers selected from all over the country for the award. Excerpts of what they told Free Press.  

Songs as teaching aid

Sarika is a science communicator who uses songs to explain complex scientific phenomena to her students and others. She also uses static and working models to demonstrate how celestial events like solar and lunar eclipses occur. She has been working to spread scientific knowledge among children in tribal areas in Hoshangabad district. She had received national award in 2017 for popularising science among children. “Awards always make you feel proud and also inspire you,” she said. 

- Sarika Gharu, Govt HS School, Sandiya, Hoshangabad dist

Students’ SWOT analysis

A postgraduate in physics and English literature, Seema has been teaching in government schools for past 24 years. She joined CM Rise School a year back where she teaches maths and English. She prepares portfolios of her students, which contain details about their family background and SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis of them. “The portfolio can tell you whether someone in student’s family can teach them, what their interests, strong and weak points are. Portfolios help to give personal attention and customised instruction to students,” she said.  

- Seema Agnihotri, CM Rise Govt Vinoba HS School, Ratlam  

Bugbear 

Yashpal Singh is the principal of Eklavya School for past five-and-a-half years. He has been teaching science to tribal and poor students for 38 years. “Science and English are a bugbear for most students. They fear them so much that they never show any interest in them. I try to ensure that they can comprehend basic mathematical concepts with ease,” he said.   

-Yashpal Singh, Govt Eklavya Model Residential School, Phanda, District Bhopal

Tigers and electrons 

To make students understand that two electrons (or protons) repel each other, Ravi Kant Mishra uses analogy of a forest where two tigers cannot live in one area together. He uses a matchbox to explain the structure of solids and a ballpoint pen to explain the structure of molecules. He uses objects around us to explain scientific phenomena. “I have been teaching since 2006,” he said.  

- Ravi Kant Mishra, JNV, Beekar, Datia dist

Scientific temper 

A PGT in Kendriya Vidyalaya, Indore, Chetna has developed low-cost aids to make teaching science fun. Working as a teacher for the past 18 years, she tries to promote scientific temper among students. “The scientific concepts are best taught and understood when they are converted from drab theory to fun-based activities,” the biology teacher says.   

-Chetna Khambete, Kendriya Vidyalaya No 2, BSF, Indore