Academician, educationist, and motivational speaker Gururaj Karajagi will lead a six-member expert committee constituted by the Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board (KKRDB) to fight educational backwardness in Kalyana Karnataka region.
Rudresh from Azim Premji Foundation, Bhalki Hiremath head Basavalinga Pattadevaru, Fr. Francis from Ballari, and Abdul Qadeer of Shaheen Education Foundation are the other members of the committee. Former bureaucrat N.B. Patil is the member secretary.
Addressing a media conference along with Mr. Karajagi and Akash Shankar, Additional Commissioner of Department of School Education and Literacy (Kalaburagi division), at KKRDB headquarters in Kalaburagi on Friday, KKRDB chairman Ajay Singh said the committee would visit government schools and PU colleges across the seven districts, interact with stakeholders, study reasons for educational backwardness, and come up with a comprehensive report and recommendations.
“Kalyana Karnataka districts often occupy the bottom rungs in SSLC and PU results. As per the Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) of Pratham Foundation, only 10.9% of children studying in class 5 in Kalyana Karnataka are able to read class 2 textbooks. Only 31.2% students in class 8 can read class 2 textbooks. Students in the region are also lagging in Mathematics too,” Mr. Singh said.
Pointing to the Net Enrolment Ratio, Kalaburagi division has enrolment of 92.07% in primary schools and 80.54% in high schools as compared to the State average of 93.25% in primary schools and 84.41% in high schools.
“Yadgir has the lowest enrolment with just 73.01% in high schools. The progress of students is also not satisfactory. Of the 1,32,790 students admitted to c lass I in government schools in Kalaburagi division, only 1,02,127 could reach class 10. It means around 32% failed in one or the other classes or dropped out. It is very serious issue,” Mr. Singh said.
He said poor Pupil-Teacher Ratio (PTR) was also a matter of serious concern in Kalyana Karnataka.
“PTR in primary schools in Kalyana Karnataka is 21.91 (one teacher for 21.91 students) as compared to 12.83 in Mysuru Division and the State average of 17.48. In high schools, it is 22.39 in Kalyana Karnataka as compared to 14.46 in Mysuru division and 19.13 State average. The committee will study from all angles and come up with a report and recommendations by January or February,” Mr. Singh said.
Dr. Karajagi said the committee would come up with short-term and long-term plans. It will work on three fronts – children’s overall development, improving teachers’ competency, and administrative reforms in education.
“We must get rid of inferiority of being backward. It is the area where Basavanna and other Sharanas led a social revolution in 12th Century. This area produced Das and Sufi saints. We have to develop a positive mindset,” Dr. Karajagi said.
Dr. Shankar said his department, as part of initiatives for educational reforms, would introduce a measure to fix the responsibility on teachers. “If a school’s performance is below the district average in SSLC and PU results, the teachers would be held responsible and one increment in their salaries would be cut. Such a measure was recently introduced in Yadgir district but it was later withdrawn as it was widely felt to be a hasty measure. But we will come up with similar measures in future,” the officer said.
Published - October 04, 2024 07:27 pm IST
