Page 18 - EducationWorld Feb 2021 Low

Education News

to provide holistic education on a par number of teachers exceeding the
with upscale private schools affiliated number of students in some govern-
with the pan-India CBSE and CISCE ment schools, the state government
examination boards. had no option but to merge them with
“This initiative will enable gov- neighbouring schools,” says Dr. Rani
ernment to reduce the expense of in- Dubey, former professor of education
specting a huge number of schools and at the Dr. Harisingh Gour (Sagar) Uni-
streamline admission processes. It versity.
will also enable savings (economies of Although Dr. Nilesh Khare,
scale) and allow government schools dean of the faculty of management
to introduce modern technology,” and commerce at the private sector
says Indersingh Parmar, Madhya Jagran Lakecity University, Bhopal,
Pradesh school education minister, admits that merging small govern-
explaining the rationale of the merg- ment primaries to transform them
er proposal. Under the proposal, an into larger composite schools will
agreement has also been signed with give them economies of scale and en-
Peepul (previously Ark India), a non- able their modernisation, merging
profit to train 300,000 government schools within a 15 km radius will re-
school teachers to use new digital quire the majority of children to com-
technologies. mute longer distances to get to school.
lthough the state government “And given the poor quality of public
has dressed up the school transport, a large number of primary
Amerger proposal to project children — and girl children in par-
a learning-outcomes improvements ticular — may drop out of schooling ary 17.
plan, independent monitors of K-12 altogether. Moreover, larger class Now further reduction of classes
education in one of India’s most so- sizes may reduce individual attention X and XII syllabuses is expected
cio-economically backward BIMARU to students,” warns Khare. because after schools reopened on
(Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan Clearly, although the phased merg- January 19, home and online learn-
and Uttar Pradesh) states, believe that er of government schools plan looks ing attainment tests indicate large
a continuous flight of students from good on paper, its implications need learning loss during the ten-month
malfunctioning state government to be reviewed and reconsidered. If closure of schools. “Many schools
schools defined by crumbling infra- not, there’s a possibility that the pro- have found that most students are
structure and poor learning outcomes, posal may accelerate the flight of chil- unable to clear elementary aptitude
is the prime factor behind the propos- dren to neighbouring private budget tests. Schools have started classroom
al to merge government schools. schools. teaching but it is still a challenge to
According to the Annual Status of Aditi Maheshwari (Bhopal) complete even the revised syllabus in
Education Report (ASER) 2019, 75 subjects such as physics and chemis-
percent of class III children in govern- TAMIL NADU try. The syllabus might need further
ment schools in Bhopal — the admin reduction,” says P.K. Ilamaran,
capital of Madhya Pradesh (pop.78 Syllabus reduction president of the Tamil Nadu Teach-
million) — cannot read class I text- ers Association (TNTA).
books and 45 percent cannot recog- conundrum This is likely to make life easier
nise numbers 11-99. Unsurprisingly for 850,000 classes X and XII
in the School Education Quality Index ike most of india’s 33 school students of 39,300 government and
2020 (SEQI) published by NITI Aayog exam boards, the Tamil Nadu government-aided schools affiliated
— the Central government’s think tank LBoard of Secondary Exami- with TNBSE, who are scheduled to
— Madhya Pradesh is ranked #15 out nations (TNBSE) has reduced the write their board exams in May-
of 20 states assessed in SEQI 2020. syllabus for its classes X and XII June.
“The quality of education provided school-leaving public examinations Last November, the state con-
in government schools is so poor that this year, because of the Covid-19 stituted an 18-member panel which
despite their free mid-day meals and pandemic induced closure of all recommended a 40 percent syllabus
tuition, they are experiencing con- schools statewide since last March. reduction. Even so most member
tinuous flight of children to low-cost With teaching-learning adversely teachers of TNTA believe they won’t
private schools which claim to provide affected, the board announced a 40 be able to cover the reduced syllabus
English medium education. With the percent syllabus reduction on Janu- within the next four months. Hence

18 EDUCATIONWORLD FEBRUARY 2021