With the opening of schools for classes IX to XII from September 1 and the board’s pre-board exams nearing, government school teachers and principals are pushing for the district administration to relieve teachers from non-teaching duties.
Since the start of the pandemic, teachers have been deputed for various Covid-related duties – including airports, vaccination centres, oxygen centers and tracing work.
On October 5, the Director of Education wrote to all education officers and heads of schools to instruct all teachers of classes IX to XII to report back to school. Pre-board exams in Delhi government schools are scheduled to begin from October 21 and the first board exams from mid-November.
“There are 14 regular teachers from my school, including post graduate teachers who teach senior secondary students and trained graduate teachers who teach secondary students, who are yet to be relieved of their duty by the district administration. It is difficult because when students of class IX to XII come to school, we need a board. We also have three vaccination sites in the school, so there are additional teachers who have to be put on duty there,” said the head of a school in northwest Delhi.
In schools that serve as vaccination centres, teachers are required to delegate duties every day. “We need to depute 10 teachers every day including PGT and TGT teachers because all the pressure cannot be put on some primary teachers. So each teacher is deputed there two to three times a week,” said a teacher in an east Delhi school.
Against all non-teaching duties on behalf of the Government School Teachers Association, especially following an order from the office of SDM Rohini, five teams of two teachers each have been constituted to conduct “inspection/drive To ensure observance of dust control measures especially in construction activities and pollution caused by burning of garbage, plastic, rubber, firecrackers.
In response, the association has threatened to “strongly protest” if all teachers are not relieved of such duties soon.
.