In house teacher workshop on Students at Risk

"Every child is gifted, they just unwrap their packages at different times".

Every child is unique. We, as teachers and parents, have to understand the needs of our children and create a conducive environment for them to grow and develop their full potential.

A workshop on Students at Risk was conducted by Ms. Jigyasa Khokhar, our School counsellor, on 28 February 2018, in the multi media room. The session aimed at understanding the problems and pressures faced by our little ones these days. The workshop was attended by the teachers of the Pre-Primary and Primary.

The workshop focused on how to identify and deal with challenges that children in the age group of 3 to 10 years are exposed to in the classroom. Issues like poor handwriting, speech delays, developmental delays, cognitive delays, restless behaviour were discussed at length.

A power point presentation on the Child Behaviour Checklist and a video on the various strategies that teachers could employ in handling students at risk in an integrated classroom, were shown for further reinforcement.

Buddy teaching, rewards, a pat on back, appreciation, acknowledgment, talking like a friend, discussing issues, storytelling for effective communication were named as some suggestive and effective methods for teachers to assist children with special needs. It was an interactive session where all teachers shared their classroom experiences. This exposure to varied methods and techniques of peers m could in turn, enable participants to deal with similar cases in their own classrooms.

Ms. Khokhar engaged the teachers in an activity based on Situations wherein they collaborated in resolving diverse challenges. A discussion ensued on upcoming technologies, which must be incorporated in the classrooms to provide appropriate environment interventions, to modify the behaviour of children.

In these sensitive times, with changes in parental behaviour due to demanding professional commitments, teachers and parents need to understand that social and emotional learning and academics go hand in hand.

The session concluded on an inspiring note with teachers motivated to modify their roles as teacher counsellors in their classrooms.

The teachers were seen enthused and excited for the new session.