Enrolment isn’t education

Pratham, the non-governmental organisation engaged in education, has come out with its fourth Annual Status of Education Report (Aser) for rural India. The results are as interesting as in previous years: there is a steady increase in school enrolment and attendance, but not much (if any) improvement in the level of education attained. Drop-out levels [...]

Scheme to improve middle school education in India approved

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today approved the implementation of a centrally sponsored scheme to universalise access to and improve quality of education at secondary stage, called Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) during the 11th Five Year Plan.
As regards the financing pattern and fund flow, Union Government shall bear 75 per cent of [...]

Will Education Bill make a difference?

The role of education in an individual’s life and furthermore the state’s role in providing education in India cannot be undermined. In 2002, the directive principle of providing elementary education to all children between 6 and 14 years of age was translated into a Fundamental Right to Education under Article 21A, by the 86th Constitutional [...]

IATE worried over poor teacher training

Indian Association of Teacher Education (IATE)’s general secretary Jaipal Singh Vyast on Saturday said though the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) is supposed to work for raising the quality of teachers training across the country, it appears to be interested only in the expansion of teachers training institutions. The NCTE is not serving the purpose it [...]

Universities cannot be dictated

“Nagaland’s proposal to set up a central university was like a dream market rather than that of a university,” president of NCSC (National Children Science Congress) Network, Professor Yashpal said today, referring to Nagaland University. The eminent professor was with the University Grants Commission (UGC) during the time Nagaland state sent the proposal for a [...]

Back to school programme bears fruit

Back to school. That is the thrust of a statewide government programme that saw nearly four lakh teachers who farmed across Karnataka the last few days seeking to enrol all children aged between six to 14 – whether on the streets of the cities or working as farm hands in the fields in rural areas [...]

Teaching kids what counts

They might be underprivileged in terms of material resources, but as far as enthusiasm and talent go, these kids are far 
from deprived. From singing, dancing to doing household chores, there is very less that these kids can’t do at such a young age. Fifteen such children got together at Uday Urban Resource centre, Vasna to welcome [...]

Two-thirds of elementary schools without headmasters: study

Two-thirds of the elementary schools in states like Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are functioning without headmasters, a study has revealed. States like Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka have no headmasters in over 65 per cent of schools. Seventy per cent of schools in as many as seven states are without toilet facilities and 20 per cent [...]

Active Learning Passive Schools

This happened during a national level workshop with school teachers. They were asked, “Which year of your life did you learn the most?” It was a personal question and not a test of their aptitude or knowledge base. After a short pause one lady said, “In class 9 I had a wonderful science teacher. She [...]

Teach India campaign strikes the right note

The Teach India class at Thaltej Primary School number 2 fell silent as a man walked in asking for his son. When teacher asked him the child’s name, he confessed, “Tinu is what we call him at home. I don’t know his real name!” 
This may sound shocking, but for teachers of schools like this one, it’s far from [...]