Education is a basic necessity today and parents are under immense pressure to not only provide education for their wards but also ensure to get them the very best within their means. Many schools are thriving thanks to this desperation. Misleading people with false promises and charging hefty fees— many private schools are pressuring parents to buy everything from books, bags right down to socks from the institution itself which are costlier when compared to market rates. In most cases, expensive books are prescribed with scant thought to parents budgets. Another concern is that school managements enhance fees irrationally never giving a reason behind doing so while helpless guardians simple go along.

 

Bringing down the whip on schools indulging in rampant commercialization of education in the country, the Central Board of Secondary Education on Wednesday issued a stern warning to the affiliated schools. In a big relief to all parents as the Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry has made books by National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) compulsory for all the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) schools from the next academic session 2017-18.

The CBSE, which provides affiliation to over 18,000 schools across the country, has started issuing showcause notices to institutions found violating its norms. The board even withdrew its affiliation from a few schools in Uttar Pradesh after noticing discrepancies in their functioning.

This move will not only bring down educational expenses but parents will no longer be forced to buy the expensive books by the private publishers that were earlier used by schools. CBSE has also advised schools against selling books, stationery and uniform for profit. The circular clearly lists the affiliation bye laws that limit the operations of the school as a community service and has asked schools to desist from engaging in these activities.

 

It won’t be wrong to say that school business has becoming a booming one with majority of them being run for profit generation. This landmark decision will help counter the increased commercialization of the affiliated schools. To make the directive effective, the CBSE however must ensure that there is enough supply of books as shortage of books has been the most common reason cited by schools. At the same time effort must be also made to standardise the quality of content in the textbooks as books by private publishers do have an edge in this regard. 

---

Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

<< Back to News List