An Odisha government proposal shows lack of political will to reform government schools
Reservation as a tool of social engineering seems to be the flavor of the season in India. To add to the competitive populism of caste-based reservation, a few months back, the Odisha government had proposed 15% reservation for government school students To reduce the “inequality” arising out of lack of “physical and economic access to coaching institutes” in medical and engineering colleges. The state machinery called it a historic decision. But isn’t it?
Several reports highlight the poor condition of government schools in many parts of the country. Odisha is no exception. It is not clear whether the state government has any serious action plan to improve the functioning of government schools. But this decision certainly shows the lack of political will to improve the education situation in schools. This intervention gives an impression that very little can be expected from government schools. The current passion to develop model schools reinforces this notion.
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fail in his duty
About 62% of students in India attend government and government aided schools. Another 38% go to private institutions, some of which are elite and the rest of questionable quality. Very high percentage of students go to government schools in Odisha. Reserving seats in higher technical institutions for government school students instead of focusing on reforms in these publicly funded institutions defies all logic. By announcing this policy of reservation, the government seems to be recognizing that it has failed in its duty of providing good education to most of the students and providing them with the necessary qualifications to get admission in technical institutions on the basis of their merit.
Decades ago, the students of Odisha had a high success rate in the national level competitive examinations. This was attributed to the strong educational foundation laid in the government schools. In those days, teachers were known for their undeniable honesty and integrity. He was devoted to his calling and earned respect from the society. Over time, this seems to have changed.
There is no dearth of ideas or practices that can improve the quality of education in government schools. The government’s resolve to act on these ideas is lacking, including capacity building of teachers to implement new pedagogical practices, an emphasis on language teaching, filling vacant teaching positions, and a change in mindset among people and policy makers. that government schools are generally backward. and less than private schools. Instead of addressing the relevant issues, the government is trying to find a solution which may make the problem worse. The policy of automatic promotion of students to higher classes without passing the examination needs to be abolished.
Creating an organization is difficult. Its reconstruction is even more so. The state cannot escape this responsibility of improving education in government schools, where a large number of children study. Focusing on them will go a long way in building up the morale of teachers and students who are likely to grow up with an inferiority complex if they follow the same flawed policies described above.
benefit to some
Some may argue that quota will help certain sections of the society who have been deprived of good education and good jobs for a long time. But this justification can still be questioned on several grounds. One of them is that the benefit of quota, if any, will be reaped by the creamy layer of students with better access to coaching and additional technology-enabled resources. There may also be an urban bias in profit-sharing.
Ananya Behera has a PhD in Sociology from Utkal University
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