Teacher awarded for setting up Hindi lab in remote border school

The Punjab Government in a special ceremony, conferred state awards upon 77 teachers on the occasion of Teacher’s Day today. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann gave away the awards at a state-level function in Hoshiarpur today. Among the recipients was Amritsar’s Kanwalpreet Kaur, a Hindi teacher at Government Senior Secondary School, Vichova, Ajnala. Kanwalpreet received the award in the Young Teacher category, awarded to teachers with exemplary contribution in expanding the scope of classroom teaching.

Posted at the border rural belt school since 2013, Kanwalpreet said the award will push her to work with more passion. The school has a student strength of 412 and staff of 17, the school is situated in a quaint village close to Amritsar.

“It is a general perception that children from the rural border belt are not interested in education or coming to school. Although the challenge is real, these kids have amazing focus and the will to exceed as they want to prove a point. As a teacher, I have always approached my students personally, ensuring I talk to them to understand them, the family situation or any other obstacles that refrain from getting access to education,” she shared while talking to The Tribune.

Kanwalpreet has managed to establish the first-ever Hindi language proficiency lab in a government school in district, designing need-based learning material for her students ensuring their success in the subject. “Teaching, especially classroom teaching, has changed drastically over the years and I feel that learning happens when both the teacher and student are on the same page. My way is to go with my student’s pace, eventually helping them cope up with textbook as well practical application-based learning. Since, majority of students at government schools, especially in the border belt, come with a psychological baggage due to their family or social situations, they need to be mentored, both psychologically and emotionally.”