Tamil teachers recognised

For the 13th year running, Tamil Murasu presented the Most Inspiring Tamil Teachers (MITT) Awards to the best in the teaching fraternity on Sept 5.

At a ceremony at the Umar Pulavar Tamil Language Centre, 14 awards in five categories - Primary, Secondary, Junior College, NIE Trainee-Teacher and Lifetime Inspiring Teachers - were presented.

This year, the three winners in the Lifetime Inspiring Teachers category are all PhD holders. They are retired teachers Dr M. Rajikannu, Dr K. Shanmugam and Dr K. Rasappan.

They were each presented with a cash prize of $1,000 and a trophy.

The awards in this category are presented to teachers who have devoted their prime years to teaching Tamil. The winners were nominated by the Singapore Tamil Teachers Union.

Said Dr Shanmugam: "This prestigious award recognises my sincere dedication and hard work in my decades of teaching the Tamil Language."

In the NIE Trainee-Teacher category, the Most Inspiring Trainee Teacher awards were presented to Ms S. Buvaneswari and Mr Mohanadass Jagathnathan. They were nominated by the National Institute of Education. They each won a cash prize of $1,000 and a trophy.

Said Ms Buvaneswari: "True learning takes place when students come to class with an eagerness to learn. And I'm very happy and motivated to be recognised at the start of my career."

In the Primary school level, Mrs S. Jegajothy of Shuqun Primary School was the first prize winner. Mrs Indranee Nadaraja of Tampines Primary School and Mrs Suguna Sampath of Montfort Junior School took home the second and third prizes respectively.

In the Secondary school category, Mr K. Saravanan of Temasek Secondary School received the first prize. Ms V. Punitha of Naval Base Secondary School and Mrs Sumathi Segar of Serangoon Secondary School won the second and third prizes respectively.

The Junior College category saw Mr S. Jagathesan of Jurong Junior College clinching the top prize. Mr Dassiah Victor John of National Junior College and Dr P. Banumathi of Tampines Junior College won the second and third prizes respectively.

In the three school categories, the first, second and third prize winners were awarded cash prizes of $1,000, $500 and $250 respectively and a trophy each.

The winners were chosen based on essays submitted through nomination forms from their students, ex-students, parents and colleagues, as well as endorsements from their school principals.

Something to look forward to at next year's awards is the introduction of a Pre-School category.

mohdfair@sph.com.sg

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