Hyderabad: The District Education Officer (DEO) of Nizamabad, Parshi Ashok, has took on the additional responsibility of teaching mathematics to govt school students every day from 8 am to 9 am. He believes this initiative will help students strengthen their math skills as they enter Class X in the 2025-26 academic year. Ashok conducts the classes via Zoom, voluntarily offering special coaching to the students. So far, as many as 500 students have been attending classes.“Because of summer vacation, students may engage in various sports or other activities of their choice. However, I felt that if they can spare just one hour, they can be better prepared to understand mathematics when the new academic year begins in June,” DEO Ashok told TOI. The informal teaching sessions began on April 25 and will continue till June 11. He teaches topics such as quadrilateral angles, trigonometry, and logarithms.Ashok, who holds an MSc degree in mathematics, believes that laying a strong foundation in the subject can foster students’ interest and reduce their fear of it. He added that one of the first opportunities students get after completing SSC is securing a seat in polytechnic. Before his appointment as DEO in Nizamabad in Nov 2024, the 59-year-old, a native of Kumaram Bheem Asifabad, conducted similar classes for three years — teaching Class 9 students in preparation for X.“After SSC, nearly 60 to 70 students who appeared for polytechnic entrance exams were able to secure seats,” he said. Some staff members have also joined Ashok in his voluntary effort to teach students. “They should be able to appear for engineering entrance examinations in the future with confidence based on what they are learning now,” Ashok said.On May 29, to assess the students’ progress, an examination was conducted for 40 students at a ZPHS school from 10 am to 11.30 am. “From their performance in the test, I could gauge that the students had grasped the subject well,” he said. Impressed with the DEO himself taking classes for their children, the parents of the students felicitated him.While more students have shown interest in joining the Zoom classes in Nizamabad now, the platform’s 500-participant limit is proving to be a hurdle. In addition to his role as DEO, Ashok also serves as a senior lecturer at the District Institute of Education and Training College, Nizamabad. “Students should be equipped to attend IIT and JEE exams as well. Building a strong foundation in mathematics will help them,” he said.Kumaram Bheem Asifabad District Science Officer (DSO) K Madhukar recalls that when Ashok was posted as Nizamabad DEO five years ago, he conducted Zoom classes for Class VI students. A ‘Master Minds’ programme, launched under his guidance to offer extra coaching classes for Class X students, is still being continued. In fact, online classes for class X were held from 4 am to 6 am to ensure they weren’t left behind academically compared to their private counterparts.Gundeti Bhavana, a student of Telangana Model School in Asifabad, had the opportunity to learn from the DEO Ashok and Madhukar during her ninth and tenth standards. Now, a second-year student at IIIT-Basar, the 17-year-old said, “Like many others, I greatly benefitted from the teaching and the special interest given to our studies.” She is currently enrolled in a six-year integrated B Tech programme after Class X.Another student, Salpana Lavanya, who completed her Intermediate, is planning to pursue nursing. A student of ZPSS Vempally, Lavanya said the online classes helped her understand the subjects better. She opted for BiPC in Intermediate, as she has a strong interest in Science.