Kendrapara: District collector Dasarathi Satpathy has donned the mantle of a teacher and taught lessons to the students of a government-run high school, taking a break from his hectic work schedule.

Children of Kalapada High School in Sadar police limits were in for a pleasant surprise with the district collector turning up at classroom to teach.

"Excitement coupled with certain degree of nervousness gripped the children of Class X, as the head of the district administration began taking mathematics lessons. However, soothing words and uncomplicated mode of teaching made the school students relaxed," said zila parishad member Josnarani Jena.

"I taught mathematics and MIL to them. I found a majority of the students academically good. I gauged good grasping power and inquisitiveness in them. I had decided to devote about half-an-hour for teaching. But as the children evinced interest, I had to extend the classroom teaching to 90 minutes," said Kendrapara collector Satpathy.

"Some of the students were found weak in mathematics. They were found wanting in simple addition, subtraction and multiplication. The school authorities were asked to pay special attention towards the academically weak students. They have been asked to enlist academically weak students subjects-wise, so that they could be imparted extra classes," he said.

"The classroom teaching done by me formed the part of Mo School Abhiyan, lunched by the state government. Under the novel scheme, we have called upon the academicians to voluntarily teach the students. Students could learn important tips from them which could come in handy for them in examination and future life," he said.

Under the scheme, qualified people are welcome to teach students to bring about a qualitative change in classroom teaching.