Anybody's playground
It was perhaps a slip of the tongue. K. Devarajan, director of matriculation schools in Tamil Nadu, may not have expected newspapers to pick up the verbal gaffe. He was reported as saying that anybody can open a school in Tamil Nadu. Even a carpenter can start a school without an official licence. He was probably right.
This statement was made in the course of a public hearing held by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) in Chennai recently. The event was attended by parents, educationists, students, activists and officials from the education department.
''As far as school education is concerned, what Mr Devarajan said is true in TN,” says Prince Gajendra Babu, general secretary, State Platform for a Common School System. “If you have some land, some chairs and some investment, anybody can start a matriculation school in TN. Getting official approval is only a formality and a matter of time. There is a huge demand for elementary schools here. More than 4000 matriculation schools are currently functioning in the state. Around 1,000 of them are awaiting approval for many years but are operational nonetheless,” he says. As there is no monitoring of these schools, their standards are abysmal, he points out.
The fire accident a few years ago at a primary school at Kumbakonam in which 96 children died stands out as a telling example of the conditions that prevail in private educational institutions in TN. After the mishap the state seemed to take action to stem the mushrooming of private schools with inadequate infrastructural facilities.
Senior educationist and former vice-chancellor of MS University Dr Vasanthi Devi points out that 75 per cent of private schools in TN are unfit for continuation. ''As per the guidelines laid down in the Right to Education Act, if we rightly examine the educational standards of the teaching staff, infrastructure of the schools, 75 per cent of schools here are fit to be closed. This is the reality. Many of the private schools here are like petty shops. They don’t even have playgrounds. In every village, private schools have been started indiscriminately. Only when they ask for approval does the government give them approval. Otherwise they can continue as long as they wish without approval. As these schools have very poor infrastructure, it is doubtful whether we can avoid a disaster like Kumbakonam in the future,” she laments.
Her concerns can be understood in the context of a simple case that was discussed at the public hearing. There was a private school in which nine students died when the school van fell into a pond. The school still functions with a changed name. Needless to say, it does so without government approval.
When TSI met Devarajan and requested him to explain his reported statement, he said he was misunderstood by the media. “According to the prevailing law, one can start a school only after showing the necessary land, infrastructure and approval from the school education department. There is an exception only for minority institutions. But in fast developing states like TN, there is huge demand for school education. When a private institution imparts quality education, more students go and join it. When somebody approaches us after starting a school, we grant them recognition only after a thorough direct inspection,” he said.
The lack of infrastructure in TN schools came in for severe criticism at the NCPCR hearing. Statistics revealed that many schools are run from rented buildings. Many were reported for not having toilets and playgrounds. Members of NCPCR expressed their displeasure about the tardy implementation of the Right to Education Act in the state.
Dr Shantha Sinha said the state was yet to frame guidelines for the functioning of the school management committee. The fact that the mandatory state commission for students’ rights was yet to be formed in the state was also pointed out during the hearing.
Incidents of abuse of students in schools and hostels by the authorities, well documented already in news reports, were reiterated during the hearing. Many victims turned up to share their woes. When explanations were sought regarding these complaints, the district education officers failed to provide proper status reports. Some claimed that the areas in question were not under their purview.
In TN, education has been a controversial subject for several years. The Equitable Education Act and regulation of the fee structure for private schools are two key issues. Under the Equitable Education Act the state government formulated uniform syllabi for all schools across various streams of education. The move was challenged in the court of law. After a prolonged struggle the issue is now settled.
But the regulation of fees for private schools has run into rough weather. A commission headed by retired judge Govindarajan first determined a fee for matriculation schools. While the Matriculation School Association has gone to court, the judge has resigned citing poor health. Now another retired judge, Raviraja Pandian, has assumed charge.
The TN school education department has won laurels for its implementation of activity-based learning in government schools. But there are areas in which they still have miles to go. Perhaps it needs many more public hearings to debate the anomalies that have crept into the school education system here.
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It was perhaps a slip of the tongue. K. Devarajan, director of matriculation schools in Tamil Nadu, may not have expected newspapers to pick up the verbal gaffe. He was reported as saying that anybody can open a school in Tamil Nadu. Even a carpenter can start a school without an official licence. He was probably right.
This statement was made in the course of a public hearing held by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) in Chennai recently. The event was attended by parents, educationists, students, activists and officials from the education department.
''As far as school education is concerned, what Mr Devarajan said is true in TN,” says Prince Gajendra Babu, general secretary, State Platform for a Common School System. “If you have some land, some chairs and some investment, anybody can start a matriculation school in TN. Getting official approval is only a formality and a matter of time. There is a huge demand for elementary schools here. More than 4000 matriculation schools are currently functioning in the state. Around 1,000 of them are awaiting approval for many years but are operational nonetheless,” he says. As there is no monitoring of these schools, their standards are abysmal, he points out.
The fire accident a few years ago at a primary school at Kumbakonam in which 96 children died stands out as a telling example of the conditions that prevail in private educational institutions in TN. After the mishap the state seemed to take action to stem the mushrooming of private schools with inadequate infrastructural facilities.
Senior educationist and former vice-chancellor of MS University Dr Vasanthi Devi points out that 75 per cent of private schools in TN are unfit for continuation. ''As per the guidelines laid down in the Right to Education Act, if we rightly examine the educational standards of the teaching staff, infrastructure of the schools, 75 per cent of schools here are fit to be closed. This is the reality. Many of the private schools here are like petty shops. They don’t even have playgrounds. In every village, private schools have been started indiscriminately. Only when they ask for approval does the government give them approval. Otherwise they can continue as long as they wish without approval. As these schools have very poor infrastructure, it is doubtful whether we can avoid a disaster like Kumbakonam in the future,” she laments.
Her concerns can be understood in the context of a simple case that was discussed at the public hearing. There was a private school in which nine students died when the school van fell into a pond. The school still functions with a changed name. Needless to say, it does so without government approval.
When TSI met Devarajan and requested him to explain his reported statement, he said he was misunderstood by the media. “According to the prevailing law, one can start a school only after showing the necessary land, infrastructure and approval from the school education department. There is an exception only for minority institutions. But in fast developing states like TN, there is huge demand for school education. When a private institution imparts quality education, more students go and join it. When somebody approaches us after starting a school, we grant them recognition only after a thorough direct inspection,” he said.
The lack of infrastructure in TN schools came in for severe criticism at the NCPCR hearing. Statistics revealed that many schools are run from rented buildings. Many were reported for not having toilets and playgrounds. Members of NCPCR expressed their displeasure about the tardy implementation of the Right to Education Act in the state.
Dr Shantha Sinha said the state was yet to frame guidelines for the functioning of the school management committee. The fact that the mandatory state commission for students’ rights was yet to be formed in the state was also pointed out during the hearing.
Incidents of abuse of students in schools and hostels by the authorities, well documented already in news reports, were reiterated during the hearing. Many victims turned up to share their woes. When explanations were sought regarding these complaints, the district education officers failed to provide proper status reports. Some claimed that the areas in question were not under their purview.
In TN, education has been a controversial subject for several years. The Equitable Education Act and regulation of the fee structure for private schools are two key issues. Under the Equitable Education Act the state government formulated uniform syllabi for all schools across various streams of education. The move was challenged in the court of law. After a prolonged struggle the issue is now settled.
But the regulation of fees for private schools has run into rough weather. A commission headed by retired judge Govindarajan first determined a fee for matriculation schools. While the Matriculation School Association has gone to court, the judge has resigned citing poor health. Now another retired judge, Raviraja Pandian, has assumed charge.
The TN school education department has won laurels for its implementation of activity-based learning in government schools. But there are areas in which they still have miles to go. Perhaps it needs many more public hearings to debate the anomalies that have crept into the school education system here.
For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri Dean Business School IIPM
IIPM Excom Prof Rajita Chaudhuri
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IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on For Salman Khurshid, it is a big challenge ahead; and I personally look forward to a revolutionary couple of years ahead!
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