Jammu: With the launch of two applications today by Chief Secretary, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta, J&K became first in the country to take online monthly feedback from students of class 6th and above about the performance of their teachers and carry out the GPS-based attendance of teachers on daily basis.
The ceremony was attended by Principal Secretary Education; MD, Samagra Shiksha; Director School Education Kashmir/Jammu, Director Estates, Secretary JKBOSE, and many other concerned officers.
Dr Mehta complimented the department for developing these applications and called them powerful tools to take the education sector toward much higher efficiency and accountability. He remarked that these applications would ensure that authentic feedback comes from the grassroots level from the ones who are directly involved in the learning process.
He enjoined upon the officers to monitor the progress at the highest levels so that the results improve substantially. He maintained that the teachers in the government sector are best in terms of qualifications and training and they just need to focus more on academic activities to ensure improved results.
The Chief Secretary advised the department to make this feedback a benchmark while analyzing the annual performance reports of the teachers. He said that the teachers who perform well and are punctual and who also receive good feedback from students should be duly recognized and rewarded by the department. He observed that such teachers should be preferred in career progression and other recommendations.
The system is named “SAMIKSHA” as it will be reflecting the true performance of the Teachers with respect to their inputs in the actual classroom, leaving no space for subjectivity.
It was given out that the student feedback forms are designed to get feedback from students on different teaching-learning techniques in the institution. Besides the teachers are given unique usernames and passwords to verify their input and outcomes. The comprehensive report will be visible to all levels viz-Teachers, HOIs, ZEO, CEO, DSEK/J, and at UT level in the hierarchy.
The department has worked out some 25 parameters (questions) regarding teachers and school ambiance, out of which 02 are optional. The school and teacher-based questionnaire need to be filled by the students once on monthly basis grading them on a 5-point scale with Excellent, Very Good, Good, Average, and Below Average results, as informed during the launch ceremony.
Another app launched today was ‘JK Attendance-SED’ available for download on both Android and iOS. The application will give a peek into the daily attendance of teachers even Directors and CEOs. The application will capture the live location of the employee with Geo Coordinates and even allow his/her time-specific tracking.
The attendance system would reduce paperwork and save time and resources. It would eliminate duplicate data entries and improve the management of attendance across all schools.
The same application would enable employees to make leave requests online. It would automatically send it for necessary approval and keep his/her leave account safe for viewing by the higher authorities.
Later on, the Chief Secretary also released the ‘Whole School Safety’ manual. He called it a very important document prepared by the department. He observed that the safety of our children is all important and should be given priority over every other concern. He declared that this document is important and provides a holistic approach to keeping children safe against hazards.
The Principal Secretary, School Education, Alok Kumar revealed that all of the digital applications besides the safety manual has been prepared in-house by the department employing its own personnel and resources. He gave out that he feels immensely pleased that the Directorate of Samagra Shiksha has trained Key Resource Persons in this regard.
He stated that the necessary orientation of all CEOs/DIET principals and teachers as per the guidelines has also been done, which explicitly elaborate on various kinds of vulnerabilities our children are exposed to and their remedies. The SOPs on current pandemic viz-a-viz the role and responsibilities of every individual concerned makes the document a comprehensive reference document.
The same is also an initiative of Samagra Shiksha which has been designed for creating a safe environment for children, starting from their homes to their schools and back, says the manual.
