-The Telegraph   Jhargaon holds out hope that success is possible, even in Jharkhand. Two years after it was chosen as a model, over 1,000 residents of this nondescript hamlet of Gumla, 110km from the state capital, want to junk their BPL cards. For, self respect does not allow them to be claimants of government dole. If self-sufficiency is their goal, the people of Jhargaon, in Toto panchayat of Gumla Sadar block, 10km...

-The Economic Times   India came 72nd of 73 nations in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) competition, despite fielding students from its best states, Himachal Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. The dismal quality of Indian education is confirmed by the latest Annual Status of Education Report (ASER).  Throwing money (Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan) and legislation (Right to Education Act) at education has produced no quality gains at all. Abhiyan spending is up from...

-The Telegraph   The quality of elementary education is falling in rural schools almost two years after education was made a fundamental right in April 2010. The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2011, a survey of government and private schools in rural areas conducted by the NGO Pratham, shows a decline in schoolchildren’s “learning outcome levels” compared with the previous year, whether in reading or arithmetic skills.  However, students of private schools have...

After the introduction of Right To Education (RTE) Act, the student-teacher ratio has disturbed the equilibrium in municipal corporation-run schools in Ahmedabad leading to a shortage of nearly 500 Teachers. Nearly 100 Teachers are required in Urdu medium schools because many from Urdu schools, despite existing shortage, have been moved to Gujarati medium schools. The situation is precarious particularly in Urdu and other language mediums because of the special nature of language...

The human resource development ministry has asked all states to assess how many additional Teachers are required at the secondary level under a new teacher-student ratio worked out for Classes IX and X. The states have also been told to start a mapping exercise to find out the requirement for new secondary schools in every district. Sources said the 1:32 teacher-student formula and the push for new schools were aimed at addressing...