Bring new enrollments or get fired, teachers from pvt schools warned

Hyderabad: The travails of private school teachers are seemingly unending in the State, particularly for those from the city. Forget about enjoying summer vacation breathers, they are now forced to exhibit their marketing skills and woo parents and have them enrol their wards in their respective schools and boost admissions ahead of the new academic year’s commencement.

Many private school managements, mainly corporate institutions, have, in fact, cancelled summer holidays for teachers, (slated to commence on April 24) notwithstanding the scorching sun. The teachers are compelled to come to schools every day and sweat it out to achieve the admission ‘targets’ set by the management.

A most embarrassing situation that the teachers face is the humiliation meted out by some unruly parents, who respond in a very harsh manner. Teachers pointed out that they have been undertaking this exercise (ordeal, to be more precise) for the past one month and they have duly submitted the relevant. Being asked to continue the admission campaign is quite burdensome for female teachers, during the particularly harsh summer. Many had to bear the brunt of sunstroke.

Making matters worse, teachers who skip this ‘campaign’ are threatened with loss of job in the new academic year.

Many lamented that if they fail to get three to five admissions, they would not be paid salaries. A group from the teaching community has urged the School Education Department to intervene and act against such errant private schools and provide relief to them. Unfortunately, their pleas seem to have fallen on deaf ears.

Sravani Rao, a private school teacher working at one of the private schools in Jeedimetla, said, “It is very shameful that we are called gurus, but the school management is using us as marketing executives. Even during exams, we were forced to go on a campaign in the mornings. Our management made it clear that we will not be paid salaries if we miss the enrollment process.”

“Despite suffering after a sunstroke and having health issues, I was forced to go on door-to-door campaigns for admissions. In the process, we are subject to humiliation by parents,” said Ramesh, a teacher in a private school in Secunderabad.

Meanwhile, Telangana Private Teachers Forum president Shabir Ali said, “This is not fair to force private school teachers to work all 365 days.