Page 34 - February EW 2024 PDF

Education News

many families could not afford smartphone connectivity THEY SAID IT
due to low household incomes.
ASER 2022 confirmed that learning outcomes “Deeply regret the passing of Dr. Jagdish
plunged precipitously during the reckless pandemic Gandhi, founder-chairman of the Lucknow-
lockdown of schools in West Bengal. The percentage
of class V students who could read class II-level texts based City Montessori School, acknowledged
plunged to 47.1 percent from the already abysmal 50.5 by Guinness World Records as the world's
percent in 2018. largest single city multi campus school with
ASER 2023 reveals the consequences of protracted over 57,000 students. Dr Gandhi was among
lockdown of schools and neglect to undertake meaning- the first to encourage the novel Education-
ful remedial education initiatives, bordering on indiffer- World venture and a committed supporter
ence, of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) govern- throughout his life. From modest begin-
ment — now in its third consecutive five-year term in nings he built CMS into a powerhouse school
office. repeatedly ranked Uttar Pradesh's No.1 coed
lthough the ruling TMC government and chief day school in the EW India School Rankings.
Aminister are being criticised for the poor learning
outcomes of children and youth of West Bengal, it’s per- All of us in EducationWorld deeply mourn the
tinent to note that the rot started during the 34 years of passing of this great educator who overcame
uninterrupted rule (1977-2011) of the CPM (Communist overwhelming odds to build a great educa-
Party of India-Marxist)-led Left Front government when tion institution.”
illiterate party apparatchiks captured teachers’ posts in Dilip Thakore, Editor, EducationWorld in a tribute to
K-12 education and massively infiltrated the academy, CMS founder Dr. Jagdish Gandhi (January 22)
ruining West Bengal’s nationally admired education
system. However during their past 13-year rule over “Our ability to remain relevant as an institu-
Bengal, Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress govern-
ment have not only failed to break the hold of powerful tion requires us to recognise challenges and
communist teachers associations/unions in schools begin difficult conversations.”
and colleges, but have become embroiled neck deep in DY Chandrachud, Chief Justice of India, flagging some
multi-crore teacher of the challenges faced by the judiciary including
recruitment scan- adjournment culture and long vacations (ndtv.com,
January 28)
dals prompting the
Calcutta high court to
halt the recruitment “We have also seen that those parents who
of teachers urgently have not been very successful in their lives
required in the state’s have nothing to say or want to tell the world
92,000 government about their successes and achievements,
schools. make the report card of their children their
The consensus of visiting card. Whenever they meet someone,
opinion among Ben- they will tell them the story of their children.
gal’s dwindling tribe
of bona fide academ- Mamata Banerjee This is not good.”
ics and influential Prime minister Narendra Modi interacting with students,
bhadralok (refined middle class) is that chief minister parents and teachers during his annual Pariksha Pe
Banerjee who famously routed the CPM in 2011 and has Charcha programme (January 29)
ruled over Bengal since, has failed to root out the cor-
ruption and extortion culture of CPM cadres. And with “The Skill India Mission has trained 1.4
close aide and education minister Partha Chatterjee crore youth, upskilled and reskilled 54 lakh
having been exposed for corruption in July 2022, her youth, and established 3000 new ITIs. A
image as a simple-living high thinking messianic leader large number of new institutions of higher
is in a shambles. Banerjee’s seeming lack of urgency learning, namely 7 IITs, 16 IIITs, 7 IIMs, 15
about teacher recruitment and apathy about the future AIIMS and 390 universities have been set
of children in public schools is losing her public sup-
port. Which is bad news for her at a time when General up.”
Election 2024 is round the corner. Nirmala Sitharaman, Union finance minister, in her
Baishali Mukherjee (Kolkata) Interim Union Budget 2024-25 speech (February 1)

34 EDUCATIONWORLD FEBRUARY 2024