CM speaks on the need for quality education
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: May 07 2011 -

SPEAKING AT a training programme for Congress workers, the Chief Minister touched on two pertinent issues related to education.

One is that, the Right to Education (RTE) Act has been enforced in the state, secondly there is the need of quality education to build a better tomorrow.

First things first, the RTE Act makes it mandatory for all state governments to create a system where universal education is to be guaranteed and provided. Given the fact school infrastructures in the state are abysmally poor one wonders whether it would be possible to apply the Act properly.

There are many schools in the hill districts which do not have school buildings or teachers or both. It may be argued that with the formation of the ADCs, education will now be a subject which will be the responsibility of the ADCs.

But then the ADCs themselves are not fully functional so one needs to ask the proprietary of making the statement. And then the conditions of the schools in the valley area are only marginally better than those in the hills. And also consider the lack of teachers.

When the government still cannot announce the results of a DPC held in 2006 to recruit school teachers among others, announcing that the RTE Act will be functional in the state does not sound credible. If only wishes were horses.

The other issue which was touched upon is the need to impart quality education to the children. This can only be described as a vacuous statement particularly so when we are neck deep in a pool of shortages, needs and wants.

Perhaps one could initiate a discussion starting with the logical analysis that in order impart quality education we must have the tools to deliver it, and the biggest tool is quality teachers, of whom we do not have that many.

And there is that ubiquitous lack of infrastructures, by infrastructures one is not referring to just the lack of proper buildings, but also to the lack of proper library facilities and laboratories.

And because of the type of society we have built, let us think twice before given tall assurances of quality education. Leave aside this, each year school students are deprived of studies, sometimes for long periods of time, because of pressures from extraneous factors.

It is sincerely submitted that we clear the mess that the education department is in, before we talk of quality education. Otherwise our assurances will have to considered as insincere promises, and we should not make such promises to our children.

Instead of making inane and perfunctory statements why don't we try to straighten up the education department, that would be a far better proposition. As they say a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.