The Jagan Mohan Reddy Government has embarked on an ambitious task of securing the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) affiliation for all the 45,000-odd State schools.
The process of affiliation involves a procedure requiring documentations pertaining to various aspects of a school and the Government is wary of the challenges. As the total number of schools affiliated to the CBSE across the country does not exceed 25,000, the Central authorities are skeptical about aligning 45,000-odd schools of Andhra Pradesh in one go. “They want us to maintain certain standards like good school infrastructure, efficient teachers and stipulated teacher-pupil ratio. We have promised them that we will fulfil all the criteria,” Education Minister Adimulapu Suresh said.
Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, in a recent review meeting, directed officials of the Department of School Education to identify and address any shortfalls.
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If the schools in A.P. are unable to comply with the long list of requirements of the Central Board, the government has an alternative. “We will opt for affiliation of the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE),” Mr. Suresh said, who is scheduled to meet the Union Minister for Human Resource Development Dharmendra Pradhan, in Delhi next week.
To seek Centre’s approval for implementation of CBSE syllabus in A.P. schools, Mr. Suresh will explain in detail to the Central Minister about the pre-primary education set-up comprising foundation schools created in the state, introduction of English as a medium of instruction in every school and imparting training to teachers through bridge courses. “The Chief Minister is determined to ensure that our students write CBSE exams in the academic year 2023-24,” he said.
Claiming that the reforms ushered in the education sector have started taking shape, he pointed to the establishment of foundation schools, introduction of English medium, printing of bi-lingual textbooks, training imparted to teachers, proposal to set up a University exclusively for teacher training and conversion of all District Institutes for Education and Training (DIETs) into teacher training institutes.
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The Minister said that to promote physical literacy, the government plans to supply sports shoes and a separate sports uniform to students from next academic year. “The Chief Minister is eager to put in place a reformed education system to suit the needs of students who come from the sections that are below poverty line,” he said.