School for scandal

Incredibly enough, the school at Naktara is not the only one of its kind. Several have been shut down because its students shifted elsewhere8212;as in the government school at Dhar Dochi8212;often because of lack of teachers and infrastructure. Consequently, the students are not even equipped with basic skills of reading and writing. The ground reality is stark enough to puncture Himachal Pradesh8217;s claims of high literacy and its ambitious plans of providing good quality primary and higher education.

The Annual Status of Education Report 2006 ASER facilitated by Pratham, an NGO, on behalf of the state government found that nearly 60 per cent of Class III students do not know how to read, write or solve simple arithmetic problems and only half the students in Class IV can read textbooks. By the time they reach Class V, they fail to achieve proficiency in the subjects being taught.

According to sources in the Education Department, the state8217;s performance looks good only in averages; the real story is different. Nearly 25 per cent schools in Himachal have only one teacher and often these teachers are deployed to update electoral rolls, carry out economic surveys or help out in Pulse Polio campaigns. 8220;A single teacher cannot take five classes. Nearly half the primary schools have only two teachers. If one teacher takes care of administration, the other focuses on Classes IV and V. In the process, the junior classes suffer,8221; say the sources.

8220;The government has opened schools at short distances without planning. So while some schools have the problem of plenty, others don8217;t have students or adequate teachers,8221; says Digvijay Singh, a resident of Jubbal, who also runs a private school. 8220;The schools don8217;t offer quality education and the government has been beating its trumpet about 8220;high literacy8221;, he adds.

Himachal has over 10,600 primary schools and 4,000 middle schools. According to Education Department sources, there are 2,000 vacancies for JBT teachers and a shortage of nearly 500 trained graduate teachers TGTs. The situation is worse in parts of Chamba, Kullu, Chopal, Nankhari, Shilai and Sirmaur areas of the state.

In the absence of a proper policy regarding the transfer of teachers, a majority of teachers manage postings through political pull at the places of their choice, depriving the schools in rural and remote areas of teachers.

8220;The government proposes to recruit 1,600 JBT teachers,8221; says B.M. Nanta, the state8217;s education director. 8220;The proposal is likely to be taken up before the Cabinet for approval. The government will also appoint 450 TGTs shortly,8221; he says, adding that the government has been making sincere efforts to fill up the posts. 8220;Himachal is fairing better than a large number of states in primary and elementary education. We will keep up the pace and improve the quality,8221; he adds.

Vivek Sharma, north India head of Pratham, says that after an MoU signed between the Himachal government, Directorate of Education and Pratham, efforts will be made to provide quality education, with focus on Classes I-III. Teachers too would be trained in elementary education with special supplementary reading material being prepared for them. It may take more than this to live up to Himachal8217;s claims on education.