The school is a second home for all the students, teachers and all those who work in the school. Because, most of the day has to be spent in school everyone. Along with teaching-learning activities, everything has to be done in the school. If the environment of the school is not favorable, then there is no way to work attentively or sincerely whether it is in teaching or in administrative functions. As a result, there will be obstacles in achieving the main aims and objectives of education.
The school is a second home for all the students, teachers and all those who work in the school. Because, most of the day has to be spent in school everyone. Along with teaching-learning activities, everything has to be done in the school. If the environment of the school is not favorable, then there is no way to work attentively or sincerely whether it is in teaching or in administrative functions. As a result, there will be obstacles in achieving the main aims and objectives of education. I am saying these because, most of the government provincialized schools I have seen, are dirty and unhygienic.
One of the main responsibilities of every headmaster should be to manage their school beautifully. So, he should first establish himself as a democratic leader instead of considering himself as a boss. He himself has to become a democratic leader and discuss the problems of the school and find a way to solve them. We have seen many headmasters maintaining a distance from his teaching staff by considering himself as bureaucrat. So, they don't care much about colleagues’ requests or suggestions for betterment of the school. They forget that the school headmaster is actually “first among the equals”! That means, the headmasters have to convince themselves that they are only in the first position among the people with equal duties and responsibilities, then only they can build a school beautiful.
Duties and responsibilities of school should be distributed equally among all the teachers instead of imposing upon one person only. While doing this, he should concern about the competency and interest of every teacher. For example, a teacher who does not know how to operate mobile phone or a computer then that teacher should not be given those jobs which often require knowledge and skills of operating those devices. It is better not to appoint teachers in game and sports who has no interest in this area or who are physically ill. The headmaster can do this part of the work in two ways- first, discussing with everyone who will be given or bestowed on what particular responsibility and secondly, secretly observing the teachers’ interests, behavior etc. He can do this work by applying both the methods jointly.
Headmasters must take the matter seriously of those teachers who are truant at their work. Instead of giving such teachers a responsibility alone, it will be beneficial if the headmaster himself works with him. There are many teachers who say 'don't know-don't know'. Such teachers should be 'taught' by the headmaster himself or by other teachers the thing that they don’t know. Then they can't show that excuses anymore. Now-a-days, it is seen that many teachers refrain from information-technology related work just because they don't know how to operate computer. This is a big problem in schools. To avoid such problems, the teachers who do not know how to operate computer can be provided with the minimum lessons from the side of the headmasters. To do so, the headmaster can give responsibility to a teacher who knows computer or invite an expert from outside of the school. If the headmaster also does not know how to operate a computer, then he should learn without delay. Otherwise, it will remain as an unsolved problem forever.
It is ethical to keep clean the surroundings of a school along with its classrooms, urinals, office etc. But most of our schools I have seen are dirty and unhygienic in every way. When asked the headmasters for the reason, they say they are unable to keep clean their school premise due to lack of fund! This is not fully untrue. Government provincialized schools do not get regular fund from the government for repair and beautification of the school. The school authorities do not have the right to take a penny from the students. Here are some alternative sources that headmasters can approach to collect fund such as – ‘incumbent assistant teachers’ or ‘ student’s parents’ or ‘community’ around the school, or ‘school alumni’, etc. Headmasters can meet and discuss with these sources to ensure the necessary funds for the renovations and beautification of the school from time to time. We should know, just looking at our faces others cannot understand what we need. We will be able to achieve our needs only if we properly express them to others.
Important thing is that in doing this the headmasters should go ahead fully planned manner. That means, the estimated amount of school proposed work, the amount of deposits in hand, the possible amount of money to be collected from various sources should be prepared in a budget in writing. Once the work is completed, the headmaster should organize a meeting and he should present the whole account of the completed work i.e. the fund collected, expenses, dividend etc.
(N.B: This partially translated article was published in a Assamese daily newspaper 'Amar Asom' on 8th May.2022 )