Now learn about trains, sitting inside one

Now learn about trains, sitting inside one

With schools closed since March due to Covid-19, the headmaster hit upon a novel idea to keep students engaged when they return.

Published: 28th November 2020 04:47 AM 

Library and classrooms at Government High School in Lekkanapatti, Pudukkottai, have been painted to resemble a train | Express

By Sowmya Mani

Express News Service

PUDUKKOTTAI: Students of the government school in Lekkanaopatti will have a pleasant surprise when classes resume. With schools closed since March due to Covid-19, the headmaster hit upon a novel idea to keep students engaged when they return.

While children are not required to come to school, teachers and headmasters have to visit schools regularly. Instead of whiling away time, S Antony, the headmaster, decided to do something productive for the benefit of students. With the help of drawing teacher Rajendran and another teacher Rajakumar, he transformed three classrooms into a train. The trio painted the walls between July and October and Antony foot the bill of Rs 15,000. 

“We had planned to take the students on a trip to Rameswaram, but unfortunately the lockdown was imposed. Hence, when the students couldn’t go to the train, the train would come to them”, said Antony. The idea is to teach children about trains, as most of them have never travelled in one, he said.

Lekkanapatti is a remote village in Illupur and the school has 236 students from classes 6 to 10. Most of them are first generation learners from shepherd families. “A majority of the students has never stepped out of this town. I wanted to give them the experience of travelling by a train. With the help of our drawing teacher, we painted the classrooms. Everything that is present in a train is visible in the painting. We’ve marked coaches to teach students about emergency exit, unreserved coach, reserved coach, AC coach, non-AC coach,” said Antony. 

This is not Antony’s first. He has given shape to many ideas that would help the students better understand the real world. There is a big globe as you enter the school which helps students to learn about all countries in the world. There is an honesty store where students drop in a box the amount of what they purchase. There is a biometric attendance for all students.