The Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 2023-24 data has painted a disturbing picture for India’s school education. A fall of 37 lakh students in school enrolment from 25.17 crore in 2022-23 to 24.80 crore, is an eye opener. Decline in enrollment is a most worrisome challenge. In Jammu and Kashmir, the ASER 2024 reveals that the enrollment between 2022 and 2024 has not gained ground. Pertinently, the declining enrollment is a symptom of the underlying ailment crying out for a remedy: introspection and dissection of the socio-economic impediments.
Notably, the figures of the UDISE 2023-24 are a reality check. Per these sobering findings, the enrollment in 119 schools across J&K has come down to zero. This leaves the services unutilized/underutilized of 200- odd teachers. Among a number of reasons, most notable is the attitude of teachers playing a pivotal role for expanding or depleting admissions. Mindful that their job and its attendant benefits are secured under all circumstances, most teachers have been found preferring something else over school work. Thus learning inseparable from teaching becomes a casualty and over time the enrollment drops.
It is common knowledge that 4 —6 out of 6 or 8 teaching officials are of the Reheber-e- Taleem category at our schools — mostly at the primary and upper level. These teaching personnel stay put: their services have been non-transferrable beginning their appointment some 24 years ago. But these teachers undeniably are ‘deployed’ out of their parent schools, underscoring their services at other schools are indispensable; also it suggests that a vast majority of them is awaiting to get an opportunity for work at other institutions from decades. Seen dispassionately, this sedentary recruitment is proving consciously or unconsciously, in the way of education both in terms of quality and quantity, a major stumbling block.
To begin with, it purportedly pushes parents to move their children away from such schools since low admissions beckon poor learning prospects. Two, the predominance of the static teaching personnel at the elementary level does not sit well with non- RET teachers’ work there. The later stampede to the gates of transfer for postings in better working conditions– work at high schools or higher secondary schools. Here the work load is by far a plain sailing backed by congenial climate, one or two classes a day alongside better infrastructure facilities and little violation of rights. By contrast, a teacher at the elementary stage is duty-bound to daily teach 6 / 8 number of classes; add to it the shortfall of infrastructure facilities — acute at times.
Meanwhile, not monitoring the state of affairs in schools leaves plenty of room for complacency, lethargy, laxity and misconceptions (about the assigned task) to reign supreme and undermine the efforts aimed at improvement. The end result: teaching standard falls and learning descends to a farce. Inevitable, therefore, is enrollment decline.
A must-have move is oversight and follow-up through inspections by public of school work, an action aiming to rein in the purportedly errant and unbecoming working style in schools. Also, the constructive involvement of parents will help them remain knowledgeable concerning the needs and worries; issues and challenges; performance and behavior of their children.
For righting the wrong, inspections by the administration cannot be overstated. The work culture and performances of schools might ameliorate, endearing them to the populace. Thus the population of students can rise. Anything less is unlikely to reverse the trend of declining performance and enrollment.
The ASER further observes that the reading ability among students has shown a declining trend: at least 55.5 percent of students were able to read 2nd standard level text in 2018. This figure lowered to 50.2 percent in 2022 and to 47.2 percent in 2024. Alarmingly only 28 percent of Class 8 students could perform division tasks in mathematics, warranting a focused attention the earlier, the better to earn public credibility and improve admissions. Do we have effective math doing teachers?
Effective teaching/learning requires specialists, something impractical and unattainable without a transfer provision for all categories of teachers. A teacher (RET or non-ReT), to work anywhere in her/his educational zone if not outside it, can smoothly be transferred. And it will be unnecessary, therefore, for a teacher to work at a school outside the educational zone or district of her/his residence. Further, the feelings of a raw deal for any teacher will be eliminated.
If all goes well, the above-mentioned measure, all-teacher transfer provision, can pay off in due course. Academic scenario can improve; so can the image and — admission level of schools. As the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 is in quest for universal education by 2030, inclusivity and accessibility for all needs to gain primacy. Teacher trainings, although essential, will not be effective unless systemic challenges are taken care of.
Today, the concept of education and by extension of educational institutions has undergone a great change. Limiting education to building knowledge and character of students is gone: education, in fact, is now viewed as something having social concerns for youth employment alongside a value system to be cultivated in line with our constitutional ideals. Are our public schools working in line with the new concept of education? The falling enrollment tells a different story.
Tragic but true is that teaching community is itself a source of concern. Even the JK Attendance app has not managed to prevent complaints against teachers. Casual or Non- performance of their duties is just one complaint. Many teachers misuse the online attendance to their good advantage or do not take their classes regularly. Several do outside assignments, leaving duty aside. This scenario defeats the government’s appreciable efforts for school improvement.
(Author is RK Columnist and teacher by profession. He can be reached at: [email protected])
