Four of the five schools run by the Department of Social Welfare in the district notched up cent per cent results in the SSLC examination, the results of which were announced recently.
There are three Morarji Desai Residential Schools and two Rani Chennamma Residential Schools run by the department.
Two of the Morarji Desai schools and one Rani Chennamma school have got 100 per cent results. According to the Integrated Tribal Development Project office, the schools in H.D. Kote, Hunsur and Hura scored cent per cent.
From the Morarji Desai school in H.D. Kote, 36 students wrote the exam, and all of them cleared it. In the Morarji Desai school in Hunsur taluk, all 37 students cleared the exam. The performance of the Morarji Desai school in Periyapatana too was impressive, with 37 of 38 students passing. From the Kittur Rani Chennamma School in Hura, Nanjangud taluk, all 34 students passed. Fifteen of the 16 students from the Rani Chennamma school in H.D. Kote too passed.
However, Development Through Education (DEED), an NGO working for the cause of tribal communities, said the results are in no way an indication of the educational status of the Adivasis. “Though these schools are meant for tribals, they include the Scheduled Tribes but not the Adivasis or forest-dwellers,” said Sreekanth, founder of DEED.
High dropout rate
He told The Hindu that a majority of the Adivasi children attend ashram schools which cater to students till Class 6, after which they drop out.
“Hardly a handful make it till SSLC, and very few of them clear the examination,” Mr. Sreekanth said.
DEED, which has worked in the field of education for tribal communities, attributes the high dropout rate among Adivasis to poor foundation in mathematics and sciences while studying in ashram schools.
According to Mr. Sreekanth, most schools lack infrastructure such as a good library and teachers are usually not motivated to focus on Adivasis. He also called for the Department of Education taking over the schools run for tribals.
