CHENNAI: Most teachers I’ve met have taken up the profession either because of family pressures or they have a child to go back to. Teaching is a noble profession and I want to encourage people to become teachers because they want to bring about a change. These awards were given to encourage teachers and let them know that their students love them,” said Vidya Srikanth, founder and director of Srinivasa Academy for Chartered Accountancy and Cost Management Accountancy Coaching, while addressing a gathering at the academy’s Excellence Education Awards 2019 recently.
Around 8,500 students voted for their favourite teachers via a Google form that the student organising committee at Srinivasa Academy had designed. “The students did a phenomenal job of reaching out to peers and asking them to vote,” she added.
“We had around 300 nominations from private and government schools in Chennai, of which we chose 100 deserving teachers to award,” said Prahalad, coordinator of the event. Senior teachers from various schools including Anna Adarsh, Velachery DAV Public School and Sita Devi Garodia, attended the event. “I met a teacher who taught me when I was in class 12. It gave me immense pleasure to watch her win an award. I would have voted for her too,” enthused Vidya.
Chief guest, professor P Jagadeesan, head of the commerce department at Vel’s University, felicitated the award winners with trophies. “The weight of how much the students can impact the world is on the teachers’ shoulders,” he shared
The Excellence Education Awards 2019 is the first-of-its-kind. Vidya insisted that they have it every year henceforth. “Teachers in our country hardly get any appreciation. There is no motivation to join this profession. After eight years of working in a corporate job, I realised that teaching was my true calling. I want to motivate as many teachers as I can,” she said.