Now, grandmothers to be invited to govt schools for telling stories

INITIATIVE Official says storytelling sessions will help build students’ character

of students will be invited for storytelling sessions in government schools in Rajasthan once every month, said a recent order from the department of secondary education.

The informal sessions will be held for classes 1-5 in one of the Bal Sabhas, organised every Saturday, wherein children present cultural activities and express themselves in some form or the other. “Directions for the same were sent to schools across the state last week,” Arun Kumar Sharma, deputy director, secondary education, told HT.

“The idea behind the initiative is to increase community involvement by roping in family elders, and through their involvement, ensure the strengthening of our family values and flow of human wisdom to children,” said Sharma.

Most of the stories have a moral; they will help build the character of the students. The interaction with grandparents

The idea behind the initiative is to increase community involvement by roping in family elders, and through their involvement, ensure the strengthening of our family values and flow of wisdom to children.

will not only give children a break from electronic means of entertainment, but also engage the senior citizens, most of whom feel left out, he said.

“We chose grandmothers because they are known to be good storytellers; it also gives a push to our gender empowerment efforts. Plus most of the grandmothers usually go to only temples and are available for the most part of the day,” said the deputy director.

Called ‘Bal Sabhas with Grandmothers’, the sessions will involve no financial implications for the department. In case no grandmother turns up, the senior teacher will don the role of a grandmother and narrate stories. “The department will also provide some sample stories to the schools,” Sharma said.

“The initiative would offset the disruptions in oral tradition caused by technological infiltrations in the lives of people,” he said. Oral tradition implies transmission of knowledge, ideas and cultural understanding from one generation to the other through word of mouth.