HYDERABAD :  Implementing the RTE Act would mean the end of unrecognised schools in the state.Can the state really afford this shutdown?

The fate of lakhs of students hangs in the balance as the deadline for unrecognised schools to apply for recognition expires on June 30. While Andhra Pradesh has about 19,000 recognised schools, it has 30,000 unrecognised schools.

As per official estimates, nearly eight lakh teachers work in these unrecognised schools which have a total student enrolment of about 30 lakh.

The Right to Education Act that came into force from April 1, 2010, calls for the closure of all those schools that fail to meet certain infrastructural criteria within three years from the date of commencement of the Act.

But the big question is: Can the state government afford to close down all unrecognised schools? It’s a known fact that the unrecognised schools flourish in the state due to the poor quality of education offered by government schools. Parents from poorer sections of society prefer these schools to government schools as they provide comparatively better education at an affordable cost.

Though government schools charge no fees, provide free midday meals, textbooks and notebooks, parents from poor sections prefer to pay and send their children to the private, unrecognised schools.

“Though the government schools have good buildings, vast play area and well-qualified teachers, most of them are busy with non-academic activities.

Children in government schools pass the exams but they cannot even read and write properly. For this reason, parents from weaker sections want their children to study in these unrecognised schools which offer English Medium and charge a small fee.

They don’t want their children to be mere “certificate holders” in government schools,” said Mr Vinayak Sagar, a senior teacher.

The vital fact is that these schools cater to students from the lower income groups. Closing them down will prove disastrous given the already poor enrolment in the state, says retired professor Ms Nishita Sethi.

Under the Right to Education Act, students from unrecognised schools will be accommodated in government schools, but the problem is the poor quality of education in government schools. "If the government still wants to close down these schools, then it should improve the quality of education in its own schools first,”points out Ms Sethi.

The Act has laid down elaborate infrastructure norms and standards for recognition such as the number of teachers, provision of toilets, playground, kitchen, minimum number of working days in an academic year, minimum number of working hours per week for the teacher, availability of teaching and learning equipment and a library.

"The implementation of these guidelines would mean shelling out lakhs of rupees and not many of the small private schools can afford it, which is why they have not applied for recognition," says Mr N.Chowdary Babu, president, Andhra Pradesh Tutorials and Convents Association, which is representing unrecognised schools in the state.

So, while the decision of the government to make recognition mandatory for all schools and lay down guidelines for the same is a good one, it is asking too much of small private schools located on streetcorners and slums that fulfil a very real need.

Good government schools meeting all the guidelines and imparting a good education, as is the norm in developed and some developing countries, is the way forward, but it is not something that state governments in this country take seriously.