Back To Public Schools

Students in Punjab are returning to state-run schools, even during the pandemic, highlighting the Amarinder Singh government’s efforts to revolutionise the education sector once dominated by the private sector. Official data show a 15 per cent increase in enrolment in government schools during the last academic session—said to be the only state with such high numbers—from the previous year. This year too, enrolment in state-run schools has recorded an 11 per cent increase despite the second wave of the Covid pandemic.

Officials say that during the current academic session nearly 1.9 lakh ­students transferred from private schools to government schools. In the previous session, the number of ­students who opted for government schools was just over 1.6 lakh.

Experts and officials attribute the trend to a changed public perception about government-run schools due the education sector reforms undertaken by the Congress government in the state. “There is a big change in these (government) schools. The ­difference can be felt,” says Patiala-based Bhushan Sharma, who has shifted his two children from a private school. “The infrastructure is better and I could feel improvement in the teaching-learning process,” he adds.

Education secretary Krishan Kumar is credited for ramping up the enrolment drive, motivating students and their parents. He made announcements using public address system of gurdwaras and other religious places, and also took part in “door to door” campaigns in the villages. “Keeping in view the efforts put in by the staff to ­improve quality of school education,” says Kumar, “officials, heads of schools, teachers and non-teaching employees are highlighting the achievements. MLAs, former MLAs, sarpanchs, ­doctors, bankers…all are reposing their faith in government schools.”

Department spokesperson Pramod Bharti says officials, school heads, teachers and non-teaching staff have been working ceaselessly to convert the enrolment drive into a mass movement. Teachers even worked on holidays such as Baisakhi to propagate the qualitative improvement in government schools across the state. Board results for 2019-20 for class 12 has improved to 96.95 per cent from 88.36 per cent in 2018-19, and by more than 28 per cent over a ­period of three years. “Our results speak for the improvement in the education system,” the spokesperson adds.

Officials say the Smart School Policy has helped spruce up infrastructure, while e-content and digital education has come handy, especially during the ongoing pandemic when students are ­attending classes from homes. There are 19,111 schools in the state, out of whom 12,976 have been put in the ‘smart’ ­category. During the lockdown last year, the education department launched the Ghar Baithe Sikhiya—learn at home—programme; teachers are reaching out to their students through Doordarshan and radio channels.

As per government data, 1.75 lakh students of class 12 were given smart phones and 3,502 tablets were distributed. As many as 2,512 middle-level schools, high schools (1,709) and ­senior secondary schools (1,894) have been provided computer labs. The Education Department has also launched the ‘Punjab Educare App’ to enable students to have easy access study-related material. The ­recruitment of 8,393 teachers in the pre-primary level has proved to be a game-changer for extending foundation-level education. The government has also recruited 3,704 teachers in the master cadre for senior schools.

A large number of NRIs settled in North America, Europe, Australia and the Middle East have come forward to support the education department. In 2019, at least 2,550 government schools with dilapidated ­infrastructure were transformed into state-of-the-art schools.

By G.P. Singh in Chandigarh