Page 23 - EducationWorld January 2023

“The teacher recruitment scam Somasundaram ascribes this
has made a mockery of Baner- demotion to children’s learning
jee’s famous electoral promise loss due to the closure of state
of paribartan (change) in the schools for 82 weeks during
education sector. Eighty percent the Covid-19 pandemic. “There
of recruitment in schools during was no classroom teaching for
her rule is illegal. This has been them for one-and-a-half years
such an elaborate scam that it starting from March 2020. The
is unbelievable that the chief great majority of children — es-
minister was unaware of what pecially in government schools
was happening,” says Sujan — have been learning only from
Chakraborty, CPI (M) central lessons telecast on Kalvi TV, the
committee member, a former state-run education channel.
MLA and Lok Sabha MP. Learning outcomes from such
The consensus of opinion one-way lectures are bound to
is that the ruling Trinamool TN government primary school children plunge to the lowest level,” says
Congress (TMC) founded by Somasundaram.
Banerjee, which routed the CPM to “eliminate the phenomenon of one Failure of the state government to
in 2011 and has ruled over Bengal (state) improving only at the cost of promote listening, speaking, reading
since, has inherited the corruption others, thereby casting a stigma of and writing (LSRW) pedagogy in pri-
and extortion culture of CPM cadres. under-performance on the latter,” mary education is also a contributory
With close aides and minister Partha the index clusters states/UTs (Union factor. “Government schools are still
Chatterjee being ousted as corrupt territories) into grades/levels I-X with focused on rote learning rather than
careerists, Banerjee’s image as a states with best performing school developing creative thinking capabili-
simple-living high thinking leader is systems grouped in Grade I and worst ties. Pratham’s Annual Status of Edu-
taking a hit. in Grade X. cation Report (ASER) 2021 survey in-
With her seeming lack of ur- In PGI 2020-21, no state or UT dicates that a large percentage of class
gency about teacher recruitment and school system has been awarded Level VIII students can’t do basic maths
apathy about the future of children I status. Seven states/UTs — Kerala, taught in class III. If students have a
in public schools, the chief minister Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, good foundational education, they will
is fast losing the support of not only Gujarat, Maharashtra and Chandigarh do well in high school and higher edu-
Kolkata’s influential bhadralok (cul- — have been awarded Level II Status cation,” adds Somasundaram.
tured middle class) but the grassroot (scores 901-950). Tamil Nadu, which owever, government spokesper-
voters as well. was routinely featured in Level II for Hsons highlight that the state’s
Baishali Mukherjee (Kolkata) the past three years, is relegated to annual outlay for education has risen
Level III (score: 851-900). from Rs.29,000 crore in 2019-20 to
TAMIL NADU The index assesses the schooling Rs.37,000 crore in 2020-21 and blame
PGI demotion shock systems of states across 70 indicators government school leaders and teach-
(parameters) under two main heads:
ers for Tamil Nadu’s demotion in PGI
outcome, and governance and man- 2020-21.
amil pride suffered a huge blow agement. Under these main categories K.P.O. Suresh, former presi-
in the closing months of last states’ school systems are evaluated dent of the Tamil Nadu Postgraduate
Tyear when the Union ministry for learning outcomes, access, infra- Teachers Association (TNPGTA), ad-
of education’s Performance Grading structure & facilities and governance mits that the outlay for education has
Index (PGI) 2020-21, released on No- processes. been increased, but according to him
vember 3, 2022, demoted the state’s In Tamil Nadu (pop. 76.4 million), the government utilises a major chunk
primary-secondary school system to a state which prides itself on its intel- to provide “freebies” to students such
Level III. lectual tradition and prowess, the de- as uniforms, books and free meals.
According to the ministry’s depart- motion of its school system from Level “Instead, the government should focus
ment of school education and literacy II to Level III where it is grouped to- on strengthening the infrastructure of
website, PGI, introduced in 2017-18, gether with the Andaman & Nicobar government schools. Because of poor
“measures the performance of states/ Islands, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Chhat- infrastructure, there’s a continuous
UTs on a uniform scale to catalyse the tisgarh and Jammu & Kashmir, has exodus of children from government
(sic) transformational change in the come as a shock. to private schools. Moreover, govern-
field of school education”. However Chennai-based educationist Dr. S. ment school teachers are not con-

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