Govt. school heads stage protest wearing black badge

Heads of government higher secondary schools in Madurai staged a protest here on Tuesday condemning the “knee-jerk reactions” of School Education Department against the heads of the schools.

To register their prortest, they wore black badges and attended to work. K. Anandaraman, State treasurer, Tamil Nadu Higher Secondary Headmasters’ Association, said the instances of compulsory transfer or suspension of heads of government schools were increasing of late.

The actions initiated against the school heads were without any proper inquiry or investigation. As an immediate reaction to videos circulated on social media, the officials passed orders affecting physical and mental health of the teachers, he said.

“Even if they do anything for the welfare of the students and it goes wrong by chance, the teachers have to face stringent actions of the department. This not only demotivates the teachers but also restricts them from taking any steps for the growth of their students,” he said.

In a recent incident, after a video of girl students performing rituals in schools got circulated, the head of the school was transferred, he added.

The officials failed to note that the teachers could not monitor every student individually and when such incidents happened, the officials should look into practical ways to avoid such incidents in future, Mr. Anandaraman said.

Further, overburdening of the heads of schools with unattainable tasks had become another major issue faced by them, he alleged.

“When they fail to meet their targets, they again face departmental actions,” he added.

The protesters said the officials should not act instantly based on any social media videos or complaints, but act only based on facts and evidence.

Published - September 24, 2024 09:56 pm IST