Visakhapatnam: Connecting teachers to enhance their emotional health

Visakhapatnam: As a teacher, if you have a story to narrate, skills to showcase, art to exhibit, dance to perform, 'Saathi' brings them all together on to a single platform. Conceptualised and initiated by state lead of Blue Orb that works for the emotional wellbeing of the students, Deepak Reddy Pabbathi, the avenue connects the teachers across Telangana and aids them share their creative skills.

Supported by Samagra Shiksha, Saathi aims at facilitating a common avenue for the teachers to strengthen their emotional wellbeing and relieve stress through a host of art forms such as mirror handwriting, puppetry, 'harikatha', 'oggukatha', reverse speech, nail art, mimicry and pencil carving. 

Besides, those who want to highlight the holistic approach of alternative medicine such as Ayurveda also get an opportunity to share their views through the avenue.

Sharing details of the project with The Hans India, Hyderabad-based Deepak Reddy says, "Saathi is similar to the new curriculum 'Ananda Vedika' in AP and 'Harivillu' in Telangana designed for the students. But Saathi has been tailored-made for teachers from both government and private schools."

When a Warangal-based teacher was raising concerns about emotional wellbeing of the teachers, especially in times of the pandemic, Deepak Reddy says, it triggered an idea of providing a common ground for the teachers through art forms and Saathi is a result of it.

From a mere 16 teachers who got enrolled for the free platform in May last year, the count has now been increased to 1,600 participants over the months.

Three months back, a YouTube channel 'Saathi for teachers' was rolled out. "Earlier, the schedule of the daily session was done on Saturdays. But now, with the schools being reopened, the session has shrunk to a weekly once affair," informs Deepak Reddy. Through Saathi, teachers exhibit their skills, share their views on what keeps them inspired and exchange best practices.

Next, the team, including state academic monitoring officer of Samagra Shiksha-Telangana Taj Babu, Pushphas Agarwal from Blue Orb Foundation, school assistant M Murali Mohana Chary, SGT Padma Cheruku and teachers Neeraja Vinjanampati and Mahesh Macharla, intends to reach out to other states, including Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.

With 59 recorded and 47 unrecorded sessions of the project coming to a close, Saathi has a planned schedule and the teachers chart out their presentations much ahead to fit into the weekly timetable. "The year-old project is receiving an encouraging response not just from Telangana but also from other parts of the country. The idea of initiating the endeavour is to express my gratitude towards teachers," adds Deepak Reddy on the occasion of the Teachers' Day.

Since Covid-19 pandemic has taken a toll on people's emotional health to a large extent, Saathi aids in reviving it by engaging the teachers in a plethora of creative pursuits.