Thane
42-year-old Rajashree Mane from Thane has been bagged the “Best Green Teacher” award for 2022-23 in a competition initiated by NGO Vanashakti to educate the next generation by strengthening teachers’ awareness about environmental protection and conservation. She won the title competing among 50 teachers from 28 schools in Thane, Mumbai and Navi Mumbai.
“Every teacher should be an environment teacher by default. Even if I teach Science, English or Hindi to class VI and VII students, I am very much into taking activities that helps spread knowledge about environment protection among the students. I have been doing this since day one. Every festival or celebration in my school is ecofriendly and I always ensure it,” said Mane who teaches at Shree Ram Vidya Mandir, Thane.
Out of the eight finalists who competed in various questions answers sessions, crosswords, puzzles, and buzzer rounds related to the environment study, Mane stood out with her performance and won the title.
“Earlier when I used to teach primary students, I took environment study as a very important subject and always ensured kids learn it thoroughly. I used all that knowledge even when I started teaching secondary students. The teaching at school reflects in their daily life later and also makes them a responsible citizen towards the environment,” said Mane.
Vanashakti director Stalin D said the award was instituted by his NGO to encourage dissemination of environment-related knowledge to students through teachers. “The present education system has done away with the subject Environment Sciences (EVS) from the school curriculum. The experts or the specialist teachers or NGO volunteers who have a better understanding of the environment interacting with schools have been laid off. This has created a vacuum and it is common knowledge that children are not inclined to study what is not in their syllabus,” said the activist, who spearheaded the Save Aarey campaign against the Mumbai Metro 3 carshed.
{{/usCountry}}Vanashakti director Stalin D said the award was instituted by his NGO to encourage dissemination of environment-related knowledge to students through teachers. “The present education system has done away with the subject Environment Sciences (EVS) from the school curriculum. The experts or the specialist teachers or NGO volunteers who have a better understanding of the environment interacting with schools have been laid off. This has created a vacuum and it is common knowledge that children are not inclined to study what is not in their syllabus,” said the activist, who spearheaded the Save Aarey campaign against the Mumbai Metro 3 carshed.
{{/usCountry}}“This is where the role of an informed environment teacher comes in. A teacher who can impart knowledge on environmental issues would always be an asset to the school and to society at large. This contest aims to increase awareness amongst the teachers who will then be motivated, well informed, and inspired to share their knowledge and improve the connectivity of the students with environment,” he added.
The Green Teachers Awards will be an annual event run by Vanshakti in Mumbai, Thane, and Navi Mumbai to start with and then extended across the state/country. Vanashakti, which works on issues related to forest, mangrove and wetland protection, has a special focus on working with schools and educational institutions to sensitise people on the need to conserve the last remaining fragments of bio-diversity of the country.
Stay updated with all the Breaking News and Latest News from Mumbai. Click here for comprehensive coverage of top Cities including Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, and more across India along with Stay informed on the latest happenings in World News.
Stay updated with all the Breaking News and Latest News from Mumbai. Click here for comprehensive coverage of top Cities including Bengaluru, Delhi, Hyderabad, and more across India along with Stay informed on the latest happenings in World News.