The Hindu : Front Page : Training programme in English for Corpn. teachers

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jun 06, 2011
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Front Page

Front Page

Training programme in English for Corpn. teachers

Staff Reporter

Photo: M. Periasamy

Better communication:P. Jeyaraj, Director, Col's Calibre Educational Innovators Pvt Ltd, speaking at the spoken English training programme for Corporation school teachers at Sidhapudur Corporation Higher Secondary School in the city.

COIMBATORE: Two-hundred-and-sixty teachers working at the Coimbatore Corporation primary and secondary schools will undergo a training programme in English.

The 120-hour programme will help the teachers improve their proficiency in spoken and written English and communication skills so that they are better equipped to handle the primary classes, says former Corporation Commissioner Anshul Mishra.

“The Corporation decided to train the teachers after finding teachers of five primary schools wanting in communication skills and English while experimenting with a new teaching-learning methodology.”

The Corporation implemented the methodology in the five schools in the last three months of the last academic year.

During the course of the implementation the civic body found that the methodology had a positive impact on students and for it to be successful the teachers needed to undergo training.

And it decided to train teachers in all the schools because the methodology is likely to be extended to all schools.

“The teachers of the five schools were unable to deliver what was expected of them primarily because they lacked sufficient skills. And, since this will be true of other primary and middle school teachers as well, the Corporation decided to train all the teachers,” he says.

The teachers were found wanting in those skills because they are secondary grade teachers who entered the profession after Plus Two and a certificate course in teaching, says S. Somasundari, Education Officer, Coimbatore Corporation.

The Corporation has tied-up with a private agency in the city for the programme, which will cover phonetics, grammar and spoke and written English, she says.

Teachers will have to attend the programme for 20 days and they will do so in batches.

The Corporation hopes that the programme will be completed by the quarterly examination holidays.

The 260 teachers completing the programme will benefit over 1,500 Corporation school students.

The first batch of the teachers started undergoing the training at the Corporation Higher Secondary School, Siddhapudur, recently.

The private agency charges Rs. 4,000 a teacher, which the Corporation is meeting with the help of sponsors, the education officer adds.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Front Page