Teachers Barred From Using Cell Phones In Schools During Academic Hours.

In a move designed to tighten rules and regulations for teachers in Kashmir, the School Education Department (SED) has issued instructions barring teachers from using cell phones during academic hours.

This comes after the issue came to limelight on social media forcing the concerned authorities to bar the teachers from remaining active on social media sites inside classrooms.

In this regard, the education authorities in Handwara have barred the school teachers from using their cell phones during the academic hours in schools.

As per the order, the class inspection will comprise 40 percent of the inspection wherein the team will assess the class, the subject taught by the teacher, number of students in the class and teaching method adopted by the teachers.

Chief Education Officer (CEO), Abdul Hamid Fani when contacted said the instructions have been issued by the ZEO concerned in his jurisdiction. “We will assess it and issue instructions accordingly for teachers in the whole Kupwara district. The government has not issued any orders allowing teachers to use their cell phone while teaching students in a classroom,” CEO Kupwara said.

The instructions were issued after the officials noticed that the teachers were using their cell phones during official hours inside classrooms, taking a toll on the academics of the students in the institution.

In wake of this, Zonal Education Officer (ZEO) Handwara on Thursday issued a circular directing all the teachers not to use their cell phones during academic hours. The heads of the institutions have also been put on instructions to implement the circular instructions in letter and spirit.

“It has been observed that some teachers are using mobile phones and waste precious time of our students by consuming academic time on social media sites like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter which is against the protocol,” the ZEO Handwara in a circular said.

“All the officials are hereby directed to refrain from using mobile phones during academic time and strict action against the officials shall be initiated in case of violation,” the circular reads.

“All the HoIs should implement this circular in letter and spirit. No teacher should be allowed to use cell phones in the classrooms,” it reads. As already reported, the J&K SED has constituted special teams to monitor teaching-learning methodologies in government-run institutions.

As per the order, the class inspection will comprise 40 percent of the inspection wherein the team will assess the class, the subject taught by the teacher, number of students in the class and teaching method adopted by the teachers.

Chief Education Officer (CEO), Abdul Hamid Fani when contacted said the instructions have been issued by the ZEO concerned in his jurisdiction. “We will assess it and issue instructions accordingly for teachers in the whole Kupwara district. The government has not issued any orders allowing teachers to use their cell phone while teaching students in a classroom,” CEO Kupwara said.