The government mandate for schools to take students on rural excursions will result in their all-round development, but would be difficult to implement, said parents and educators.
On Saturday, Maharashtra passed a government resolution (GR) stating that students from Classes V to X should be taken on excursions to rural parts of the country once in an academic year. The trips have to be conducted by schools across all boards and students have to be shown places that are historically, geographically and culturally significant and in line with the tourism ministry’s push for rural tourism.
“Students should be exposed to rural and poorer areas in more than just a token yearly trip, where these areas are treated like curios,” said Simantini Dhuru, director of educational trust, Avehi Abacus Project. “It would help in their all-round development if bigger steps were taken. Exchange and interaction between public and private school students even within the city would help build empathy and understanding.”
“Most schools have too few teachers to supervise such large-scale trips,” said Nilan Rane, vice-principal (junior college) at Ruia College. “The cost would also be significantly higher than single-day excursions. However these excursions would definitely supplement their learning.” Parents are also unlikely to send their children on these trips. “The cost, and anxiety of overnight stays might deter parents,” said Dilshad Thobani, headmistress of H.A. and L.S. High School.
“It will give children exposure to the rest of the country, help them understand the problems faced by the poor,” said Preeti Sane, whose daughter studies in Class 8 at Canossa High School, Mahim. Jayant Jain, president, Forum for Fairness in Education, said, “Schools should make the trips compulsory by linking them to marks. The expenses might have to be borne by parents. There is no limit on fees, bringing us back to the issue of schools charging unfair fees. ”
