BY BASHARAT RASHID
The Jammu and Kashmir School Education department’s enrolment drive has been witnessing overwhelming response from people as compared to previous years, while the Director of the department along with district and zonal level education officers were also seen participating and promoting the drive at several places, which is literally a good step and is playing a vital role in enhancing the overall roll of students in government schools, particularly in far off areas.
The drive as per the officials is bringing positive results, which is worth appreciating, while they talked about the quality education in the schools as well, which needs to be endorsed by everyone. However, there are several other genuine points, which need to be addressed by the department to make such drives more efficient. The officers of the department is in nook and corner of valley have been talking about quality education, which is obvious, as Government schools are having teachers, who usually qualify several exams before being posted in the department, but most of the schools lack infrastructure, with two or sometimes three classes being taken from a single classroom, thereby giving tough time to the students, while it affects their learning process as well.
On the other side, maximum private schools are having good infrastructure, with teaching-learning process in such schools continued to prosper, with innovate ways. Although fee hike in private schools remained prevalent, which has been a matter of grave concern for the people living below poverty live, who usually enroll their wards in Government schools with the hope that they will achieve the goal of their life? Therefore, I recommend the infrastructure in Government schools should be up-graded while study material, uniform and other things, which are being given free of cost, should be made available for students, so that they won’t face any kind of inconvenience.
Pertinently, enrolment drive intiative helps department in keeping the students under competition, as students from Government schools have been shining in several district, & UT level competitions, but the officials at the helm of affairs should also work in making the young students aware about different career opportunities through career counseling sessions on weekly basis, as maximum students especially in rural areas have been lacking awareness, which is the matter of serious concern.
Apart from that, tribal students rarely appear in schools at some far-off locations, wherein people must be made aware about the importance of education, so that their wards visit school daily to get education for change. If we talk about sports, the sports activities in Government schools literally witnessed major development, thereby helping youngsters to develop their interest in sports, and show active participation in different competitions, but at the same time, there should adequate land and space in Government based schools especially in Primary and Middle schools, so that students ensure practice sessions around their respective schools to learn and lead in their sports field of their choice.
Interestingly, some teachers have been promoting teaching-learning processes at Government schools through social media, which is also heartwarming, and can inspire other teachers to follow the same trend in promoting education at Government schools. Few of the teachers ensured good roll in schools by adopting play-way method, as it boosts the learning ability of individuals, besides making them competent in facing presentation stage.
The Government however needs to develop advanced technology in primary and middle schools, like they ensured facilities at some Higher Secondary institutions by installing smart classroom equipments. Such facilities at primary and middle level can help teachers in preparing students for many competitions. To conclude, i can say that School Education Dept’s drive should continue to flourish, but should come with more and more opportunities for students, besides up-gradation of infrastructure and other facilities at grassroots level.
The author is a freelance Journalist & Media Coordinator at National Child Development Council (NCDC)
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author.
The facts, analysis, assumptions and perspective appearing in the article do not reflect the views of GK.