813 Ennum Ezhuthum teachers to be honoured on Republic Day

CHENNAI: For encouraging teachers who worked as Key Resource Persons (KRPs) for Ennum Ezhuthum scheme, the School Education Department will honour 813 teachers from various districts on the occasion of Republic Day, Thursday.

According to the department sources, the teachers will be honoured at their respective districts by the collector on Thursday. Though it is said that the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) has finalised the teachers list, many are unaware and are in dilemma over the criteria of selecting the KRPs for honouring.

Speaking on this, a government teacher said, "There was no intimation of such honours by the department till the last moment. Moreover, the District Institute for Education and Training (DIET) at many districts clarified that they have not prepared the list. There are speculations that SCERT must have prepared the list themselves."

But, what caught the attention of teachers is, having the names of teachers who retired prior to the implementation of Ennum Ezhuthum scheme. "There are a few retired teacher's names in the list. The teacher retired in May, prior to scheme implementation in June. There are chances that the faculty must have attended a model training before rolling out the scheme, "added the teacher.

And, faculties in the department allege that honouring the teachers is a way to promote the Ennum Ezhuthum scheme like the Illam Thedi Kalvi (ITK) scheme, which is the department's pet project.

The education department implemented the Ennum Ezhuthum scheme to bridge the learning gap among students below the age of eight.

As the children developed a learning loss during the COVID-19 pandemic, the department has been training the teachers to conduct practical-way-of-learning. So far, three phases of training have been completed under the KRPs in each district.