Education department for changes in high schools

GULBARGA: With the state government wishing to implement the Right to Education Act (RTE) from 2012-13, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan submitted a proposal to integrate eighth standard in 814 higher primary schools across the state, sources in the Education Department told Express on Tuesday. Previously eighth to tenth standards were parts of high schools. The sources said that as per RTE,  eighth standard should get bifurcated from high schools and be integrated with higher primary schools.A survey conducted by the department found it would be difficult to bifurcate eighth standard from all the high schools. Then it was decided to bifurcate eighth standard from high schools where the student strength was 70. Finally, it was decided to bifurcate eighth standard from high schools where the student strength was 40. A survey found that 814 high schools across the state had the required strength. Belgaum district recorded the highest number with around 123 eighth standards in the district while Udupi recorded the lowest with two. “For the integration of 814 higher primary schools with eighth standard, there is a need of 1,268 more teachers and 1924 class rooms in these higher primary schools,” the survey stated.Sources said teachers may be redeployed from  schools where there is excess staff. Also, fresh staff maybe appointed. The proposal would be submitted to Union Human Resource Ministry in a meeting in New Delhi in May first week. The state government would begin the process of integration once the proposal was accepted, sources said. In the first phase, the integration would be implemented only in government schools. In the second phase, the education department would enter into an agreement with  private institutions on a public-private-partnership basis to build primary schools each at a distance of one kilometre. Also, 25 per cent grant will be given to SC/ST, minority and poor students to run schools wherever there are no government primary schools, sources added.