The Hindu           21.12.2011

Corpn. may soon take over schools

Coimbatore Corporation may get to add 59 schools to its kitty, if all goes according to plans.

The Corporation Committee on Education, Playgrounds and Parks has taken the first step in this direction at its first meeting, held a few days ago. A resolution passed at the Committee meeting says that the Corporation Council should pass a resolution to take over the administration of schools in added areas.

The purpose of passing such a resolution, according to R. Santhamani, the Committee's chairperson, is to ensure that the infrastructure and quality of education in the schools are on a par with that of the Corporation schools, what with the schools technically coming under the Corporation limits.

As per a Corporation study, there are 25 Panchayat Union Elementary schools, 34 Panchayat Union Middle schools, nine government high schools and 13 government higher secondary schools. Of those the Corporation is likely to seek administrative control of only the elementary and middle schools.

They add up to 59 schools. And if the civic body takes over the schools, the total number of schools will go up from 82 to 141 schools. The number of students will also go up considerably. At present, the Corporation schools cater to 28,845 students.

Improvement

Corporation school hogged the limelight in the last couple of years when the then Corporation Committee and administration initiated a series of steps to improve the quality of education. They introduced soft skills, communicative English and a few other training programmes.

They also asked the teachers to conduct special classes, coaching and prepare question bank for students appearing for public examinations.

The results of such efforts were visible in the March-April 2011 examinations. A few students scored district ranks and the number of students with high marks increased.

The Corporation also managed to get ISO certification for a couple of its schools.

R. Kalyanasundaram, former Chairman, Corporation Committee on Education, Playgrounds and Parks, says that the present Committee will be justified in asking for the 59 schools only it is committed to improve infrastructure and quality of education.

“That calls for dedication and honest, clean approach.”

But all is not well within the Corporation. The number of elementary and middle schools has decreased over the years. The number came down from 64 elementary and 14 higher elementary (middle) schools in 1991-92 to 40 and 15 now.

In short, the Corporation has either closed down or merged a number of schools. Mr. Kalayanasundaram says the reason has to do with the fall in students' strength.

Funds, however, are not a problem for the civic body because it has to utilise five per cent of the taxes it collects towards education. Mr. Kalyanasundaram says the question is how well it uses the funds.