Pupils suffer due to staff shortage in model schools

Kurnool: Students are suffering with shortage of teaching staff in model schools. The State government had introduced the model schools in 2013 with English as a medium of instruction to provide quality education to rural students on par with Kendriya Vidyalayas and corporate schools.

As many as 35 schools were sanctioned to Kurnool district and were constructed at a cost of Rs 3.02 crore. The Central government had sanctioned 75 per cent funds in 2011 and asked the State government to bear the remaining 25 per cent.

Now, the total maintenance is being borne by the State government as Centre stopped funding. Delay in releasing sufficient funds by the government, these schools are unable to maintain the basic amenities like drinking water, cleanliness and adequate teaching faculty to teach all the subjects.

Even after completion of three academic years, the situation remains the same in all the model schools in the district. As per the reports available with the Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) department, there are 35 model schools in the district.

The total number of students’ strength is 17,920 and all the students are from rural villages. There are 640 teachers, including principals and staff, who are being paid on an hourly basis.

The schools need an additional 300 teachers and another 300 non-teaching staff. One of the principals of a model school told The Hans India that the principals were trying to convince the teachers in their schools to teach at least one additional subject apart from allotted subjects because of staff shortage.

He stated that students will leave the model schools if shortage of staff continues further. A lecturer from Aspari Model School said that commerce classes were not commenced for Inter first year students as there is no lecturer to teach the subject.

A teacher, who hails from Gudur mandal, was asked to teach mathematics apart from social while another teacher from Aspari mandal is teaching botany and physics.

There is a dire need of 10 lecturers for commerce, 8 for physics, 10 for chemistry, 12 for economics and at least 8 for mathematics in all the model schools.