Karnataka - Mangalore   

Parents averse to public schools: SFI

— Photo: R. Eswarraj

DISCUSSION:Teachers and social activists at a meeting on the state of government schools in Mangalore on Saturday.

MANGALORE: The Student's Federation of India (SFI), which is the students' wing of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), has found that even parents facing extreme financial hardship tend to admit their children to private schools.

Sharing the findings of a district-wide survey conducted by the federation, its district president, Jeevan Kutthar, said that 40 per cent of government schools saw less than 10 students joining the first standard this year, and about 42 per cent of such schools had less than 20 students joining the first standard. Eighty per cent of those who joined the first standard in government schools were from migrant workers' families.

Mr. Kutthar said that there was a high degree of awareness about the benefits of good education even among poor people. “More and more parents want their children to have better education and lead a better life than them. They are convinced that government schools cannot provide that escape from a life of poverty and deprivation,” he said.

According to him, the issue of falling admissions has two dimensions. “One is purely an issue of perception,” he said. Private schools, run in small buildings, often have teachers who are not qualified. “Government schools invariably have qualified teachers, who come through a Statewide selection process. The image of private schools as centres of excellence is built by greedy managements,” he said.

But there is also substantial truth in the fears of parents that government schools are understaffed and lack basic infrastructure. According to the survey, 39 per cent of government schools in the district face a shortage of teachers.

In 59 per cent of such schools, students do not have any sports equipment to play with. About 80 per cent of schools do not have a laboratory and 74 per cent do not provide computer education. In 59 per cent of schools, there are no toilets or playgrounds, the survey has found.

H.R. Naveen, State SFI president, who was present during the release of the survey data to the press, blamed the State and Union governments for the state of affairs. “This is created by the complete withdrawal of the Government from its primary functions, which involve healthcare and education,” he said.

Advocating a uniform system of education, he called for the setting up of neighbourhood schools where children from all classes and castes could study. “Only when the children of the rich enter government schools will standards improve,” he said.

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