Teachers reluctant to meet enrolment targets amid scrutiny

To boost student admissions in government schools across Punjab, School Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains recently launched a state-wide campaign to strengthen the enrolment drive. Following the launch, the enrolment process has begun in government schools, with Ludhiana, being the largest district, expected to lead the way in enrolling more students. The education department has set an ambitious target for schools, aiming for a 15 per cent increase in admissions this year.

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However, the task seems challenging, as teachers’ unions are concerned about cases filed against several head teachers in the district. These cases stem from discrepancies between the number of students enrolled and the actual attendance during inspections. It was alleged that some head teachers inflated student numbers to claim more grants for various purposes, which has raised suspicions and led to investigations.

At the same time, the department has formed several teams to visit all blocks in the district to ensure maximum enrolment in Government Primary Schools. A fleet of 23 vans will travel across Punjab, visiting various educational blocks in different districts to encourage parents to enrol their children in government schools. One of these vans is currently touring villages in Ludhiana to spread awareness about the enrolment drive.

However, a question arises that why many teachers are not fully committed to achieving maximum enrolments this time? Given that the local education department has already taken action, registering an FIR against a head teacher for embezzlements of funds by inflating student numbers, why the teachers are not embracing this initiative positively?

DEO Primary Ravinder Kaur emphasised the need for transparency in the enrolment process. “We cannot claim grants from the government showing more strength of students. Government aims to give admission to more and more students in the schools so that the masses are educated and it should be done in a transparent manner. We cannot deceive the department by showing fake enrolments,” she said.

A head teacher from a government primary school expressed concerns about the pressure placed on teachers to increase enrolments. “We can encourage villagers or migrants to admit their wards, but if these children leave or do not return, how are we held responsible? We cannot force parents to send their children to school,” rued the teacher.

It may be mentioned here that the Education Department’s goal of increasing enrolment in pre-primary schools is by 10 per cent Last year, over 3.51 lakh students were enrolled in Punjab’s 13,100 pre-primary schools.

The enrolment drive is focused on identifying out-of-school children, promoting government school admissions and enhancing community involvement to ensure universal access to education.