Two Odisha Teachers Receive National Awards From President

Bhubaneswar: Two teachers from Odisha received National Awards from President Ram Nath Kovind through video-conferencing on Teacher’s Day on Saturday.

One of the recipients of the award from the state, Tapas Kumar Mohanty, is a teacher in Bhima Bhoi School for the Blind in Khurda. An experienced teacher, he has devoted himself to developing practicable and adaptable methodology for the teaching of children with visual impairment.He has authored many publications dealing with teaching practices for the visually challenged. He has played an important role as a state resource person for developing teaching-learning materials and processes for teaching the children with special needs in general schools.

Basant Kumar Sahu, who also received the award from the President is Acting Head Teacher in Government Upper Primary School, Sarasara, Harabhanga in Boudh. He has contributed to making the learning enjoyable and interesting for young students with effective innovation of using shadow puppets and string puppets in classrooms. He has also revived the skills of puppet making as a craft among school students and using the puppets for enhancing learning activities in a joyful and exciting way. His innovation has lead to development of a handbook on the making and use of puppets in teaching by primary and upper primary school teachers.