The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : When teachers learn to jive…

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Thursday, Oct 23, 2008
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Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

When teachers learn to jive…

Sangeeth Kurian

— Photo: S. Gopakumar

New lessons: An aerobic session for schoolteachers organised by the SSA in the city on Wednesday.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Jiving in front of her students to the accompaniment of a popular Bollywood remix number was perhaps the last thing in the mind of S. Meenambika Devi when she enrolled as a teacher at the Government Girls High School in Chala.

Ms. Devi who teaches Malayalam at the school will now train her wards in aerobics thanks to an ‘innovative education programme’ for girl students launched by the Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA). SSA is a national programme launched in 2003, to achieve universal elementary education.

“It was quite unexpected,” said Ms. Devi about her school’s decision to pick her as one of the 42 participants to attend a four-day training programme in aerobics organised by the SSA. The school decided to send her in the absence of a physical education instructor. “I had read about it (aerobics) only in magazines and was apprehensive about doing it,” she said.

Selection of students

After the training, the teachers selected from 42 schools across the district will train a select group of 50 girl students of Classes VII and VIII in their respective institutions from December. “The students will be identified based on their aptitude for physical activities by the teachers,” said K. Ambika, programme officer, SSA.

The one-month training programme in schools will begin with a three-day residential camp for students and parents to create awareness on the benefits of a fitness regime in school.

Usha Nair, Reader, Lekshmibhai National College of Physical Education, who trains the teachers, describes aerobics as a “workout for the heart.” Unlike other workouts, aerobics is more enjoyable as the movements are in accordance with the music, she said.

The hour-long session scheduled to be held after school hours will be followed by refreshments, tea and biscuits, for the students. “The students will also receive a tracksuit and a T-shirt for the session,” said C. Karthikeyan, district project officer, SSA. The aerobics programme is expected to cover over 2,000 girl students in the initial phase.

For Ms. Devi, the high school teacher, a 10-minute introductory session on aerobics complete with the pulse hiking movements and steps appears to have negated her concerns about the workout. “The session was really invigorating. I am sure aerobics will be beneficial to the students,” she said.

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