From school principals to multi-tasking pundits

After the enterprising principal of a Delhi government school successfully stimulated her students8217; interest in reading by providing them with second-hand comics and children8217;s books beyond the school library system, the DoE has decided to incorporate the interests and expertise of experienced government school principals to create an 8220;in-house pool of talent8221;, which will then help the DoE sort out various issues in education.

The DoE will identify subject specialists and area experts among the principals of Delhi government schools, who will then act as mentors for and represent the DoE in various forums in their fields of expertise.

The idea is to develop a pool of expertise, so while one principal will be trained in the martial arts to become a self defence expert, another will become a trained mathematician. This pool of in-house expertise will then become the government8217;s think-tank and help the DoE decide on how to train its students better in different fields and tap various different kinds of aptitude.

These 8220;mentors8221; will also advise the DoE on policy decisions made in regard to their field. 8220;A principal knows about the needs at the school-level and there are many people who are motivated and interested in certain fields, and want to work in the field concerned and train others in them,8221; Reena Ray, Education Secretary, said.

The idea for the creation of a 8220;subject or area expert8221; was developed during discussions on creating and developing the library system in government schools.

8220;With one person, P Lata Tara, principal of the Rajkiya Pratibha Vikas Vidyalaya, taking charge of the project, the idea that school principals should be empowered as experts came up,8221; Ray said.

In this voluntary programme, principals who come forward to take up any particular area will receive support for attending all seminars on their area of choice, creating training modules for other principals and teachers, and creating a network of people to develop that field. The DoE will call for volunteers at annual meetings held with the school principals in mid-January. 8220;I8217;ll be meeting the principals from January 12 to 14 for our regular interaction. We8217;ll ask them to volunteer for the subject of their choice then,8221; Ray said.

The 8220;subject8221; here is not merely the syllabus to be taught. The areas that the DoE has identified as possible fields, where expertise can be developed, vary from primary education to mental math and English communication. Library management, Building as Learning aid Bala, maths puzzles, astronomy and the integration of differently abled children are some other areas identified. The DoE also expects that principals will come up with more such areas of interest and expertise once discussions on the actual implementation of this project begin.

8220;There are people who are interested in fields such as self defence classes, creating mathematical puzzles and games or debating. They can take charge of developing DoE resources in these diverse fields,8221; Ray said.

The aim of this project will be the creation of what the DoE calls the 8220;quality circle8221;. 8220;Principals who volunteer will form a core group of experts, and will brainstorm on various areas of school education and then spread their ideas into the system,8221; Ray said.

8220;Responsibility cannot be shared, so it is good to put one person in charge of a project to ensure its success,8221; Anita Satia, DDE South district, said. Satia is also considered an 8220;area expert8221; in mental mathematics.

The project will act as recognition of work done by various experts. 8220;The identification of principals as 8216;experts8217; also translates into showing appreciation for their contribution to education,8221; Ray said.

In addition, the DoE plans to videotape the training modules developed by experts so that all teachers and schools can learn from them. Experts will also give the DoE feedback on how the school experience can be improved upon.

Empowering of school principals and rewarding them for their contribution to education is something the DoE seems to have focussed on in the past year.

Earlier this year, a select group of 24 principals from government schools went to the UK as part of the UK-India Education and Research Initiative UKIERI exchange programme. They visited different schools in Britain and interacted with educationists to study the public education system there.

The selection was made on the basis of school exam results, implementation of various government policies, and fluency in English.

A management-training programme with IIM-Ahmedabad and IIM-Bangalore was also organised for principals this year to give them tips on how to better manage schools.

8220;It8217;s a big boost for our self image if we are recognised for the work we have put in,8221; Satia said. She said: 8220;So far, people have done a lot of work in different fields because they are passionate about the subject and care about the children. Any recognition will definitely motivate even more people to develop their interests.8221;