CNI schools to save teachers from parental harassment

Mou Chakraborty
Kolkata, January 22, 2007

Students are not the only ones stressed; teachers and principals too are under constant pressure from the parents of pupils and the administration. A watchdog body for schools is now framing a policy to check harassment of teachers.
The Principal and Teacher Protection Policy will be followed by a host of city schools, including La Martiniere for Girls, La Martiniere for Boys, St James School, St Thomas’ Boys’ School, St Thomas’ Girls’ School, St Paul’s, Pratt Memorial and United Missionaries — all run by the Church of North India (CNI).
“On many occasions, parents harass teachers and principals over trivial issues. It is easy to point a finger at a teacher for scolding a child, but the teacher too should have the right to defend himself. Increasingly, teachers are being penalised for no fault of theirs,” said Bishop P.S.P. Raju, head of the Calcutta Diocese. “Principals are in an even worse situation as they also have to tackle the rpoblem of disgruntled teachers.”
The CNI’s decision to frame such a policy was prompted by an incident in Bankura last September.
A student of Bankura Christian Mission Girls’ School run by CNI had committed suicide after she was unable to perform in class. Though no FIR was lodged, the student’s parents held the principal and teachers responsible for the death.
According to CNI, there have been several such situations where schoolteachers have been grilled and harassed for punishing an undisciplined student. “Such incident leads to unwanted stress and tension for the teachers and we will have to do something to protect them from situations for which they cannot be held responsible. Otherwise, it will be difficult to run schools peacefully and in a disciplined manner,” Bishop Raju said.
Neil O’Brien, chairman of the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE), had also recently suggested the need for de-stressing teachers and principals.
The policy will help teachers defend themselves against allegations of needless punishment. “If the teachers live in fear, how will they teach the students? We are not framing any guidelines, but a policy, which all CNI schools will have to follow. This policy will help teachers defend themselves in the court of law,” Bishop Raju said.
But students will definitely not be left to suffer. The policy will include a clause to ensure that the interest of students too is well protected. “We do not want our children to suffer, hence the policy will also preserve their rights. But at the same time, we will ensure that teachers are not harassed for trying to enforce discipline in school. We will have to see both the sides and ensure everyone’s safety,” Bishop Raju said.
CNI is taking the help of educationists, psychiatrists, sociologists and a group of lawyers from Delhi to frame the policy. “After the work is complete, we will first implement it in a central Kolkata school and watch out for loopholes. If everything goes all right, we will implement it in the rest of the schools. We hope to start the trial run in a month’s time,” Bishop Raju said.
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