Teachers to be taught about adolescent minds

In the wake of recent crimes committed by adolescents in the city, the education department has embarked on a five-day workshop to acquaint teachers with the adolescent perspective and problems.u00a0

The Rashtriya Madhyamik Shikshak Abhiyan, which started on January 7 at Hume High School in Byculla, intends to heighten the empathy between adolescents and adults, by giving teachers an insight into the minds of the mid-teenagers.

Somnath Chakor, a teacher from Yusuf Meherali Vidyalaya in Tardeo, said, "There has been a slew of crime incidents involving adolescents in the city and we need to understand why.

The recent incidents in Bandra and Parel are cases in point. We have also come to know that students go to video game parlours and play games themed on rape and what not. This training will help teachers grasp the psychology of adolescent students and give them an understanding of why the adolescent crime rate is on the rise.

The education department has asked Std IX and X language teachers, barring English teachers, from all aided and unaided schools to attend the workshop.u00a0The talking points include adolescent needs, behaviour and changing attitudes, the harassment they are subjected to at school, the oppression they perceive themselves facing from figures of authority at home or school, and the role of teachers in their world.

The teachers' training will dwell on the subjects of love and attraction among youngsters, money issues for teens, and relations in peer groups. Representation pic

Significantly, the training will dwell on the subjects of love and attraction among youngsters, money issues for teens, and relations in peer groups. It also aims to elaborate the mind games that go on between teachers and students, how teachers can control their latent or evident anger, and how they can befriend students.

"The training will also train parents on how to deal with their kids," Chakor said. "On Wednesday, we received a good response to the workshop, Some 90 teachers had the session." He added, "Some teachers were trained earlier by YASHADA (or Yashwantrao Chavan Academy of Development Administration, the administrative training institute in Pune which meets the training needs of state government departments."

An official from South Mumbai education department said, "The training session is compulsory for all teachers. It will help them deal with students who are in their adolescence. Teachers are instructed to arrive on time for the training sessions which begin at 9.30 am."