Securing schools

The recent fiat by the Central Board of Secondary Education requires around 19,500 affiliated schools to have psychometric tests conducted for all school employees. This is among a series of knee-jerk reactions that have followed the horror of the murder of a student in a school in Gurugram. Other measures enumerated in a circular the board has sent out are more logical: a “security and safety audit” of the premises and the employees by the police and fixing of the responsibility for the students’ safety solely on the school authorities. The board, state governments and the Centre are all under pressure from the Supreme Court, which is seized of the matter.

Psychometric tests would ideally measure the employees’ attitude, personality and behavioural orientation. Not only is the number of persons to be screened staggering, the premise of such tests actually preventing criminal behaviour by identifying negative traits in the subjects is open to debate. Anyone thus identified is sure to challenge the system and claim, with some measure of credibility, that he or she can’t be discriminated on the ground of having the potential to do something wrong. When academic credentials of even teaching staff members have, on occasion, been proved to be forged, what is there to ensure the integrity of such testing?

The safety and security of children is of paramount importance to society. This means providing them with a safe environment at home, outside, while commuting, and in school. Since education is a major part of a child’s life and a fundamental building block of the individual’s future, special emphasis must be laid on the child’s safety in school. This equally applies to all children, rich or poor, those in government schools or private. The shocking lack of infrastructure in government schools is often ignored. This must not happen. Security audits must include infrastructural assessments, and an audit of the educational facilities being provided. It is our duty, as a society, to ensure good, safe education for our children. We must concentrate on that goal rather than chase quixotic psychometric windmills.