Toying with the idea of satellite schools

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The idea of cluster colleges might have received a cold-shoulder, but that has not deterred the Education Department from toying with a similar concept, that of satellite schools. The State Government is considering the proposal which moots a system of pooling facilities between schools falling in a specific area to avoid a complete shutdown of uneconomical ones.According to the figures stated by the education officials, one third of schools in government/aided sector is running in loss with division fall and drop-outs. But the UDF Government, as soon as it came to power, had made it clear that it does not intend to shut down any school, including the Multi-Grade Learning Centres (MGLC) situated in terrains difficult to negotiate. Which means, upgrading or improvement are the only way out before the government.“Each school would have its good and bad points. While a school would have better infrastructure, hostel and playground, a second one nearby might lack all this but would have better labs or library. “The idea is to ask them to share the common facilities with one school acting as the satellite school. A pooling system where the facilities of one school would come handy for a couple of schools, leading to upgradation of the quality of learning. The proposal is only being worked out,’’ said Director of Public Instruction, A Shajahan. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) proposes restructuring and reformation in schools in many aspects. The provision of facilities being one factor. The proposal intends to bridge the gap between schools as proposed under RTE.However, the Left teachers’ organisations have raised concern over the proposal. ‘’The idea should be to take up five schools and envisage a scheme to upgrade all five. It is not proper to turn four schools as branches of one school. That would snatch the schools off its identity. Schools are owned by the locals there, the PTA and the students. Seeing it as a government property makes matters worse,’’ said M Shajahan, Kerala School Teachers Association (KSTA) general secretary. The proposal is awaiting a policy decision of the government, which would have a tough time devising plans to keep the uneconomical schools running.