JOIN USThe Karnataka government’s proposal to merge 3,372 single teacher primary schools and 78 higher primary schools with nearby institutions has not come a day too soon. These schools hardly have the minimum requirement of pupils for the state to be able to run them sustainably. Such schools can hardly claim to be places of learning, where a single teacher handles all the classes in all the subjects. It is not surprising that they have not attracted pupils. Besides, maintaining them in their present state is neither economically viable nor academically sound. They are schools only in name. Merging them with other well-established institutions in the vicinity is not only an unassailable proposition, it will make continued schooling for their students more financially feasible. Indeed, it is the solution the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has recommended for lakhs of similar schools across the country. The state government has been wasting money on schools that served no practical purpose. Combining them with nearby schools that are better endowed with students and teachers will not only help attract more pupils, it will enable the government to improve teaching facilities in those schools. The money that was for long ploughed into unviable “schools” earlier could now be spent on the expanded institutions by providing more teaching facilities, playgrounds and other infrastructure.
Primary education in Karnataka has always faced many problems, mainly due to poor planning on the one hand, and a lack of flexibility, on the other. Official statistics reveal that out of every 100 children admitted to a primary school, 20 never attend classes while another 55 drop out before they reach middle school. These are mostly disadvantaged children from poorer families. Since school education is a state subject, it is up to those governments to devise innovative ways to attract such children to school, such as flexible timings, mid-day meals or no-detention policies. Merging their schools with better established ones is one such approach to retain them in school.
Children studying in single teacher schools are the most neglected, being denied even proper classrooms, besides a loss of proper guidance and care in their formative years. It is for this reason that the Centre has recommended several measures to improve school enrolment and retention such as converting single teacher schools into two teacher schools where one teacher can be kept on reserve to work in a cluster of three or four schools. In desperate cases, they could be completely merged with other schools in the neighbourhood. Even if the government has to spend money on transporting these children, it would still be a feasible proposition.