Utter confusion is prevailing in various government schools in erstwhile Karimnagar district with the start of new academic year from March 21 instead of the earlier June 12 after summer vacation.
The new academic year had commenced from March 21 after the completion of the annual examinations for all classes on March 17 and for SSC students on March 30, as per the directions of the School Education Department.
However, most students assuming it to be vacations are not turning up at the schools after the annual examinations got over. This is hampering the distribution of textbooks to the students.
Teachers are unable to attend school as they have to either be at the SSC spot valuation that began on Monday or participate in the Prof. Jayashankar ‘Badi bata’ programme to take up enrolment of students into the government schools.
Spot valuation
With more than 80 % teachers in the district involved in the SSC spot valuation, ‘Badi bata’ programme remained a non-starter in a majority of the schools. “Who will conduct the Badi bata programme when the mandal education officers (MEO) school headmasters and teachers are deployed in the spot valuation,” a government school teacher in Karimnagar asked.
“How is it possible to conduct Badi bata programme when the headmasters are busy in the conduct of SSC examinations from March 17 to 30 and again allotting the SSC spot valuation duties,” complained a headmaster. The authorities have threatened to take departmental action if we fail to attend the spot valuation duties, he added.
Exemption sought
Majority of headmasters found fault with the new academic calendar to start the classes in the hot summer season.
Telangana Rashtra Teachers Federation district president M Prathap Reddy said that the MEOs and nodal officers should be exempted from SSC spot valuation duties and urged the authorities to deploy them only for ‘Badi bata’ programme.
