Tough test for govt schools

Tough test for govt schools

English-medium private institutes gaining edge

THE school education sector’s performance remains painfully less than satisfactory. Its record of providing universal, equitable and excellent standard of education to children in government schools is dismally low. Now, it has been found out that an increasing number of parents are opting to go in for the costly private schools. Such parents would rather make a dent in their pockets for brighter prospects of their children than send them to government schools. Even the midday meal (MDM) scheme of the government is no longer deemed to be an attractive incentive. With the Right to Education Act in place, the government is mandated to teach the poorest and most vulnerable kids until the age of 14 free of cost. But a law has not — and, by itself cannot — create the ideal conditions for the school education ecosystem.

These are the latest questions that the HRD ministry has encountered from the parliamentary committee on the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and MDM scheme. The House panel sought reasons for the fall in new admissions in state-run primary schools by 15 per cent even as they had gone up by 33 per cent in private schools between 2010-11 and 2014-15. It turns out that the mushrooming of English medium private institutions is one of the primary reasons to hit enrolments at the primary level.

In this context, the decision of some states, including Punjab, to set up English-medium primary schools is the right step towards reversing the trend. The learning of the language from the beginning would also eventually contribute to raising the pass percentage of students in classes X and XII, which at present is poor. The next academic session would see as many as 2,750-odd schools across the state imparting instruction to children in English. Catering to those more comfortable with the mother tongue, the state government has wisely kept the option open for children to select the medium rather than impose the foreign language on all. Now, for a smooth and effective transition, it has declared a slew of measures: training teachers, rationalising their postings, providing smart classrooms and textbooks and sports facilities. Welcome declarations, indeed, but there’s a lot of homework to catch up with.

Courtesy : The Tribune Editorial