TIRUVANNAMALAI: 34-year-old A Rasheena’s day starts with an 8 km motorcycle ride from her house at Vandavasi town to the Panchayat Union Primary School in Kallankuthu in Tiruvannamalai district. It does not stop there, though. She continues her journey to small habitations in and around the school, with just one mission in mind – educate children.
A primary school teacher, Rasheena thought of bringing education to the underprivileged students, when the pandemic-induced lockdown shut schools all over.
Absence of digital connectivity and proper guidance had forced the children here to loiter around during school hours, while their counterparts in the city raced ahead with online classes.
Located in one of the most backward regions of the district, the school where Rasheena is employed in, has a total of 84 students, including 10 from the Scheduled Tribe. Nearly one-third of them do not have access to TV sets or smart phones.
“There are about seven habitations located around the school. I spend about two days each in every habitation to teach the children there,” says Rasheena. Her classroom is not defined as the usual concrete space within four walls. A little space under a tree, or the premises of a temple, or even a thinnai (raised platform adjacent to the main entrance of a house) is enough for Rasheena to take classes, all the while ensuring her students maintain a safe distance among each other, and wear masks.
She says, “We make use of whatever space is available, otherwise, these students have no other opportunity to learn and stay connected to the syllabus.” Her mission does not end with teaching students from her own school, but also from her neighbourhood. She signs off saying it is the urge to serve students in a disadvantageous situation that provides her with the impetus.