With their perceived preference for premium private schools for their children, techies are rarely associated with government schools. But a bunch of techies based in Technopark, Thiruvananthapuram, is out to change that perception, which they describe as cliched.
A forum called ‘My Government School’ was formed four years ago under Prathidhwani, a collective for the welfare of IT employees, which has a presence in all IT parks in the State. It now has 30-odd techies who send their children to government schools.
CSR funds
“The objective goes beyond admitting children in government schools. The aim is to uplift the schools’ general standards by playing an active role in the Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs). We are also doing our bit to channelise the corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds of IT companies for developing the schools’ physical infrastructure,” said Ajith Anirudhan, a member of the forum.
He said there had been a perceptible change in the public’s attitude towards government schools, which had received a facelift in terms of physical infrastructure in the past few years. Once the pandemic subsides, My Government School intends to organise more events in Technopark to reach out to more people. Before the lockdown, children used to be brought on field trips to the Technopark campus.
The forum also serves as a bridge with other initiatives of Prathidhwani. For instance, on Saturday a group of techies who are part of Varakoottam, Prathidhwani’s forum for arts, were roped in for beautifying the kindergarten classrooms of the Government UP School, Karyavattom.
TVs, phones distributed
With remote learning in vogue, the collective mobilised funds and distributed 50-odd televisions and 70-odd smartphones to eligible students from government schools near Technopark. “Many members of My Government School had their schooling in government institutions and are aware of its advantages. But somehow, the initiative has not quite taken off in other IT parks,” said Bineesh Nagoorkhani, now PTA president of Government UP School, Karyavattom.
Mr. Anirudhan said government schools ensured a secular and grounded upbringing. “People need to break free of the ghettoisation engendered by caste and class to see its benefits. They should shed the perception that their children should move among a certain class to dream big and succeed,” he said.
