Hyderabad: Over half of all primary students in Telangana are in private unaided schools, according to a recent central govt survey, which ranked the state third in the country in such enrolments. Nagaland and Puducherry were first and second on the list respectively.
The Comprehensive Annual Modular Survey for 2022-23, released by the ministry of statistics and programme implementation last month, showed that over 57% of all primary school students in Telangana are enrolled in private unaided schools, compared to the national average of 23.4%.
This figure is much higher in urban areas such as Hyderabad, with over 67% of students preferring private unaided schools. The national average in urban areas stood at 43.8%. Even in rural areas of the state, parents preferred private education with 50.4% opting for it as compared to the national average of 16.6%.
Reacting to the survey, a mother of two children in Hyderabad, said: “Why would I admit my child to a govt school with no teachers and no classes, when I know I’ll get what I pay for at a private school?” A sentiment echoed by many others.
Govt must invest in public education: Experts
Teachers have expressed concern over the findings of the survey and said that the govt must bolster its presence and attract more students by offering quality education.
Blaming the inaction and failure of successive govts in investing in public education, child rights activist Venkat Reddy of the MV Foundation said, “Not a single govt has tried to implement the recommendations of the Kothari Commission, which called for 6% GDP expenditure on education.”
Speaking about the reasons why govt schools are losing out on students, Mahatma Gandhi University professor Anji Reddy, who specialises in education economics, said, “Many schools have one or two teachers, and they also are not punctual. In far too many govt schools, all the classes are clubbed together and just a single teacher handles them.” In comparison, he said private schools have digital classrooms, large playgrounds, and good infrastructure making them a more attractive option.
Busting pvt school myth
Meanwhile, experts countered the perception that private schools are better. Prof Anji Reddy said it is govt schools that in fact have better qualified teachers than private ones. “Govt teachers are filtered through difficult recruitment processes, so it is not a quality issue, but a regulatory one. Parents also want their children to stay in school all day, and if the govt can provide more teachers and better infrastructure for just that, the trend will reverse.”
Venkat Reddy said that for parents sending their child to a private school is a status symbol. “Parents also think that their kids are in good hands because they are ‘closely monitored’ and everything runs as per systems in private schools, but that is far from the truth.”
