Private schools use teachers as salesgirls

 ​Hyderabad: “Are there school-going children at home?” This is what school teachers deployed on canvassing duties by the private schools has to ask, making door to door visits like salesgirls to mobilise admissions.

The teachers are afraid of what will happen to them if there is only one male person at home. “The way they ask you to come inside sends shivers down your spine,” said one teacher. These are some of the humiliations meted out to them and has become an everyday affair for scores of women teachers put on door-to-door publicity by private school managements to take early admissions.

The School Education Department (SED) and Telangana State Board of Intermediate Education (TSBIE) have already declared illegal enrolling students prior to the announcement of the academic calendar for 2018-19 and said that stringent action would be initiated against schools indulging in such practice.

However, nowhere does the writ of the State government departments seems to prevail following the schools stepping up their door-to-door publicity to grab children before some other school snatches them away.

According to sources, each teacher has to fetch anywhere from 10 to 25 children as part of the early admission campaign. If they fail, there would be a cut in their salary.  Speaking to The Hans India, Anand (name changed) from a prominent school having about 20 branches in the twin cities has already started imposing salary cuts on the teachers for not enrolling students since February, this year.

"We have to teach classes from 7.30 am to 10 am or 7.30 am to 12.30 pm. After that we have to go on a door to door canvassing from 4 to 5 pm,” he added.Another school having its presence in Meerpet, Almasguda and other places in the twin cities has been sending the teachers for canvassing in the morning. Following this, they will have to complete their daily teaching duties in the afternoon. 

One more school running primary and higher secondary schools in Ballarpur, Badangipet, Saroornagar and with branches elsewhere has changed the school timings from March 29, to facilitate the teachers for canvassing.   

What is more taxing for the teachers is, “Our school has about 14 branches in twin cities, including Uppal, Chintalakunta, Attapur, and Ameerpet. It has also branches in Siddipet, Warangal and several places across the State,” said faculty member Narayana Reddy (name changed), adding, “we have to start by 7 am and after a lunch break report back to continue canvassing from 1.30 pm to about 4 pm,” he said.Telangana Private Teachers Forum (TPTF) president Shiek Shabbir Ali said, “the teachers are not able to even express the humiliations they are suffering. 

Also, the system has become so cruel that even a pregnant teacher had been put on canvassing duty. She had to be rushed to the hospital when she could not stand the scorching sun and fainted.” We are meeting and submitting petitions to every party leader in the State Assembly to bring some sanity in the functioning and service conditions of teachers in private schools,” he said.