In North Karnataka, teachers reach out to students at their doorstep

HUBBALLI: Experts and stakeholders in the education sector have pointed out that online education will only accentuate the divide between the privileged and the impoverished students. Moreover, poor or non-existent internet connectivity in rural areas has further legitimised the case of those opposed to the move. Against such a backdrop, teachers of government schools are reaching out to students at their homes and on streets, which are turning into classrooms.
Headmaster of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya in Siddapur, Karatgi taluk in Koppal district Chandrashekhar Ganawari told STOI that the institution had rolled out the ‘school in street’ programme to teach kids left behind because of their economic situation and by dint of staying in remote areas. “Our school is a residential institution, and the students are mostly from around 20 villages in Gangavathi taluk. Majority of them do not have smartphones, and the villages do not boast net connectivity. Our teachers are conducting classes on the streets of Sulekal, Huli Haidar and Bhattara Narasapur villages two days a week. In Siddapur, we are holding classes in the evening each day. Students are being given homework, and we are following up on their progress over the phone,” Ganawari said.
The Koppal school is not the only institution in North Karnataka that is taking education to the children. As many as nine teachers of the Government Higher Primary School in Okali in Kamalapur taluk in Kalaburagi district have been conducting classes on roads, temples and community halls, all the while adhering to the safety norms prescribed by the government.
Somu Kudarihal, a teacher at the Government Lower Primary School in Laxmi Camp, Kuntoji in Koppal, fortunate to have 20 students at the camp, is teaching all of them using the Devara Katte in the locality.
Hanamant Katarki, upset with seeing students frittering away their time, decided to make visits to the homes of 100 children in Kengalagutti village in Vijayapura district, where he has been taking classes at their doorstep. Katarki makes it a point to stay outside the homes, careful to take utmost caution to keep the Covid-19 infection at bay.
‘Such initiatives most welcome’
Many parents do not have smartphones, and may not have the technical knowhow to get their children to participate in online classes. In such a scenario, efforts by teachers are most welcome. The government must take cognisance of these attempts and try to device an alternative to deal with the prevailing situation.
- BR Gangappanavar | Retired deputy director of public instruction