Tie-up with education NGOs welcome step

The Karnataka government has done well to join hands with four non-government organisations (NGOs) to improve the quality of teaching and learning in government-run schools in the state. It has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with Pratham, the Azim Premji Foundation, Sikshana Foundation and Khan Academy to draw on their formidable expertise and experience in the field of literacy to jointly tackle some of the problems that confront education in the state. Pratham, for instance, has been a force behind the Annual Status of Education Reports (ASER) which have provided educators across the country with valuable insights into what ails our education system. Its reports have drawn attention to the fact that very little learning is actually taking place in our classrooms; children are not acquiring basic reading, writing and math skills. Pratham has now been roped in by the Karnataka government to implement its ‘Read Karnataka’ programme in 13 districts of the state. Drawing on its own material and methods, Pratham will work with teachers in government-run schools to improve learning outcomes among children. Over 500,000 students in 18,426 government schools will benefit. Shikshana will work with the government to implement its ‘Prerna’ programme, which is expected to improve student motivation by tackling issues such as fear of failing among students. This is likely to address the problem of school dropouts. While the Azim Premji Foundation will continue its programmes in capacity building and in-house training, the Khan Academy will provide e-content in Kannada to support the government’s Technology Assisted Learning Programme.

High dropout rates and poor learning outcomes are among the many problems facing Karnataka’s government-run schools. Children do not want to remain in these schools or are not interested in learning because teaching is uninspiring and curricula unimaginative and unrelated to the reality of children’s lives. The few children who persist with schooling do not perform well in examinations. The performance of students in government schools is dropping year after year. Consider this: the percentage of government schools where no child passed the SSLC exams rose from 52% last year to 60% in 2017.

Karnataka is India’s science and technology capital and is known for its institutions of higher learning. Its government-run schools, however, are in shambles. Clearly, there is a need for a radical transformation of pedagogic methods and curricula in these schools The MoUs with the four NGOs open up space for the state to usher in this transformation. The government must follow up the MoUs with strong support to its NGO partners to implement their programmes.