The post of a Physical Training teacher in a Bijapur high school has been vacant for 14 years.
Bengaluru, Nov.22, 2018
By Ajay Ramanathan
A high school in the Agarkhed village of Bijapur’s Indi taluk has had no Physical Education teacher for over 14 years. The headmaster of Shree Shankarling High School Ramesh Bajantri said: “The post of the Physical Education Teacher has been vacant since 2004.”
There are eight teaching positions at the school in all. Namely- Hindi, Kannada, History, Science, English, Math, Drawing, and Physical Training (PT). Of these, the post of the Physical Training teacher is vacant.
However, the blame cannot be placed on the school entirely. Speaking to the softcopy, Bajantri clarified – “We did send out applications for the post. However, we have not received any responses.”
Explaining the procedure for appointing teachers, Bajantri added -“The Commissioner’s permission would have to be taken and then, there ought to be a call for applications”.
The Department of Public Instruction lays down the minimum qualifications for appointing High School teachers. The candidate should either have completed a Bachelor’s degree in the requisite subject or should have a B.Ed in the requisite discipline.
The students of Shiva Shankarling High School currently do not have a Physical Education Teacher as the post remains vacant. “The school is an aided school with 248 students studying between class eight and 10.” – Bajantri explained
The draught of applications for the post comes as a step backward for Physical Education in the country with the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) reportedly calling for mandatory health and physical education for Classes – one to 10.
As far as Karnataka is concerned, The Department of State Educational Research and Training (DSERT) brought forth a State Curricular Policy Framework in 2007 that identified Physical Education as being one among the core subjects.
Furthermore, a Karnataka State Education Policy report mentioned that Physical Education teachers ought to have equal opportunities in terms of promotion.
That said, the treatment of Physical Education teachers has been a lingering issue. A June 2013 report contended that the Physical Education teachers in Karnataka had planned to go on a strike due to the non-implementation of the LN Vaidyanathan Report Committee Recommendations. The piece reported that despite the fact that Physical Education was mandatory; the government was disinterested in its effective implementation.
Highlighting the importance of Physical Education, Bhumika Patel, International Marathon Athlete said, “Physical Fitness is instrumental to health and well being of an individual. It also contributes to increasing the lifespan of an individual.” She added- “Having the right teacher and mentor is very important as far as physical Education is concerned. Furthermore, Physical Education must be inculcated as a lifestyle from a young age”
“There are many athletes with high potential in rural areas that need nurturing. More members of the community like corporate ought to support the government in harnessing this potential” Patel remarked.
