Staff shortage, fund crunch, dismal facilities: Survey sheds light on bleak state of elementary schools in Jharkhand | Education News,The Indian Express
The survey was conducted by Gyan Vigyan Samiti Jharkhand and the report, prepared by economist Jean Dreze and researcher Paran Amitava, slammed “decades of state apathy” towards education in the state and said it was “both a mistake and an injustice”.
The survey was conducted by Gyan Vigyan Samiti Jharkhand and the report was prepared by economist Jean Dreze and researcher Paran Amitava. The report, released on roadscholarz.net – a portal run by freelance scholars and student volunteers interested in action-oriented research, socio-economic rights and related issues – said basic comparisons between the sample schools and all-Jharkhand data from the Unified District Information System for Education (U-DISE) did not uncover any evidence of ‘serious bias’.
The survey covered topics such as the condition of the school infrastructure, teaching methods, midday meals, obstacles to better quality education, remedial measures initiated to help children affected by the Covid-19 crisis, and teachers’ views on various matters.
The report said: “The dismal state of the schooling system in Jharkhand reflects decades of state apathy towards elementary education. This apathy is both a mistake and an injustice. It is a mistake because quality education for all could transform the economy and society of Jharkhand. It is an injustice because it keeps oppressed classes and communities where they are.”
The report said that para-teachers accounted for a majority of teachers, 55 per cent, at the primary level (classes 1-5) and 37 per cent at the upper primary schools (classes 5-8). These teachers have ‘lower qualifications and less training’ than regular teachers. “…it is doubtful that they are more accountable. Also, this split teaching cadre, where para-teachers have much lower salaries and less regular pay, is not particularly conducive to mutual cooperation,” the report said. The survey pointed out that this was at a time when the teachers pointed out that “most” pupils had forgotten how to read and write by the time schools reopened in February this year after the pandemic.
Shortage of teachers
Rating: 5