Justice J Nisha Banu of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court said with schools concentrating on marks, the real happiness of students is lost, at the launch of Happy Schooling, an initiative by the Madurai Corporation, in association with HCL Foundation and MS Chellamuthu Trust and Research Foundation.
The initiative was launched at ten corporation schools during the first phase. The objective is to promote emotional well-being and academic excellence among the students. After Justice Nisha Banu inaugurated the initiative, Madurai Corporation, HCL Foundation and MS Chellamuthu Trust and Research Foundation signed a MoU, at a function organised here, on Friday.
Addressing the gathering, Nisha Banu said that for the students to grow up with a good mindset, it requires a good atmosphere. It is a sad fact that due to financial requirements both parents go to work and as a fallout of this, children have forgotten the art of conversing with their parents, she remarked.
Stating that Happy Schooling is a very good initiative, Nisha Banu said that though several people have joined hands, it is in the hands of the teachers to effectively implement it and that the teachers should be motivated to do so.
Speaking at the event, the Corporation Commissioner Aneesh Sekhar said that he came up with the concept of Happy Schooling as he thought that something was missing from the curriculum. He also said that when he came up with the idea, MS Chellamuthu Trust and Research Foundation and HCL Foundation joined hands with the Corporation for this initiative. Apart from funding for this initiative, HCL Foundation is also streamlining the project by roping in NIMHANS to assess the output of this project.
Aneesh Sekhar further said, “Children do not like to go to schools and this issue should be analysed. In my assessment, the system has been like this for several years wherein the students are measured in terms of academic excellence and marks. We have to shift the focus and bring out the talent and creativity in the children. This will give them the confidence and help them succeed in life,” said Sekhar.
The Commissioner said that teachers played a critical role in this project as they are vital in creating a generation for the society. “Apart from academics, teachers should focus on building good relations with the students and encourage them to communicate freely with them. Herein lies an opportunity to create a better society,” added Aneesh Sekhar.
Addressing the gathering, Founder and Senior Consultant Psychiatrist of MS Chellamuthu Trust and Research Foundation, Dr C Ramasubramanian said that was very happy to be a part of this conference which focuses on wellness, instead of focussing on illness. “Ten years ago, one percent of the people in the country used to have depression but currently the percentage has increased to 10.6 percent. The World Health Organisation mentions that depression is going to be a major issue by the year 2020 as no steps are being taken towards preventing it,” he said.
Ramasubramanian said that several psychiatrists and social workers have mentioned that the mental health of an individual could be improved when they are in schools and colleges.
Stating that this is the first of its kind being introduced in the Corporation schools, Ramasubramanian said that this initiative would remove the fear of school and teachers among the students. “Under this initiative, life skills and counselling would be imparted to teachers who in turn could counsel the students. It is a very good initiative that offers counselling to the students, teachers, and parents under a single roof,” he added.
Director, CSR Head, HCL Foundation, Nidhi Pundhir, Associate Vice President and Centre Head, HCL, Madurai B Subbaraman, Chairman, Aparajitha Corporate Services, Bharath Krishna Sankar, Registrar of NIMHANS, Bengaluru, Dr K Sekar and Chief Education Officer of Madurai Corporation M Rajendran were present during the event.
