TIRUCHY: Teachers from government and aided schools within the Tiruchy corporation limits covering Thiruverumbur, Tiruchy City and Tiruchy West constituencies again being directed to report for booth level officer (BLO) duties for the next 10 days or so have sparked concerns among the teaching fraternity about students suffering prolonged classroom disruption.
A directive issued by the Tiruchy school education department on Monday on the orders of the city corporation has instructed teachers assigned for the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls to undertake field visits.
According to teachers' representatives, the order follows nearly two months of SIR-related work carried out during November and December last year, which resulted in the “cumulative absence” of the teachers from classrooms for “several weeks”.
Teachers' unions estimate that nearly 200 primary and middle school teachers within the corporation limits have now been diverted for non-academic duties, a move they say is straining the already thin staffing in urban schools.
While education officials maintain that temporary arrangements are being made to ensure classes continue, teachers argue such measures are limited and largely ineffective.
School teachers and headmasters told TNIE that learning has been affected for students over the past two months.
One government school in the city, cited as an example by teachers, has over 120 students and eight teachers, three of whom were assigned for SIR work.
"One teacher is forced to handle two classes at the same time. Much of the period goes in maintaining discipline rather than teaching," a teacher said, adding that this affects the quality of instruction.
The concerns come amid ongoing protests by secondary grade teachers (SGTs) in Chennai demanding equal pay for equal work, which entered the 27th day on Tuesday.
Hundreds of teachers from Tiruchy are participating in the protest, further tightening staff availability in schools.
Further, while office staff and anganwadi workers are deployed for election-related work in several rural parts of the district, teaching staff are allotted the duties more within the corporation limits, teachers' unions alleged.
Perjith Rajan of the Tamil Nadu Elementary School Teachers Federation said the issue had been raised with the authorities in November last itself.
"We are prepared for election and census duties, which are mandatory. However, long-term deployment like this severely disrupts schooling. Claims of alternate arrangements rarely work on the ground," he told.
When enquired, a senior official in the district administration told TNIE that "serious arrangements" are being made to deploy excess teachers to corporation schools to minimise disruption. The official, however, did not specify numbers or timelines.
