The education system of Assam: A perspective

Himangshu Ranjan Bhuyan  (himangshur1989@gmail.com)

Education is the main driving force of progress and development in human society and the main safeguard of social life. If this arm is not strong, it is natural to disrupt academic and social life. Therefore, every welfare country in the world has accepted education as a basic need. In fact, the prosperity and progress of a country depend on a quality education system. No matter how rich a country is, if education is poor, it can never progress. In recent times, globalization has placed great emphasis on education around the world, and various measures have been taken to implement the ‘Education for All’ system for the overall development of education. It has emphasized the need for the expansion and influence of science and technology in the modern education system and has made it progressive by expanding vocational education, enabling people to find new paths in the complex pace of life.

Under Article 45 of the Constitution of India, free and compulsory primary education for all children aged 6 to 14 years is adopted as the guiding policy, and various schemes are adopted to achieve the objectives of universal primary education. These schemes, like Operation Blackboard, Restructured and Restructured Teacher Training System, District Primary Education Scheme, Mid-Day Meal Scheme, Non-formal education, Education Guarantee Schemes, Alternative and Innovative Education Systems, Janshala Schemes, and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, have significantly contributed to bridging the gaps in achieving the goals of universal education. The 86th Amendment to the Constitution of India, 2002, paved the way for the enactment of the right to free and compulsory education. The Act of 2009 seeks to create an environment for every child to receive quality education without any discrimination or exclusion so that quality education and appropriate education systems are implemented for all. As a result, quality education, equality, non-discrimination, and the right to education ensure the freedom of children.

Similarly, since the middle of the 1940s, a considerable number of primary, secondary, and higher secondary schools have been established in our state of Assam and continue to shape the future generations of Assam. This is a pleasant thing. But once schools are established, once students come to school to learn, and once teachers come to school to teach, can our future generation develop themselves as a true human resource? They never can. In short, the true picture of the educational environment will shine and effectively shine like gold only through the coordination of teachers, students, parents, administrators, and government departments involved in this intellectual practice. The strong leadership, creativity, and hard work of the head of the institution play a major role in this regard, and only then can it be said that the educational aspect is complete. Currently, the Central Government has taken various steps to improve the quality of education, such as the construction of school buildings, the supply of furniture, the supply of drinking water, toilet facilities, etc., to make the education system more effective at the primary and secondary levels. In order to run a school properly, it is essential that the school building and its surroundings are environmentally friendly and equipped with the minimum necessary furniture and teaching equipment. There is no doubt about it. However, even these can never improve the educational quality of a school. The most important thing is to entrust the responsibility of teaching to the right people. In fact, the quality of education will improve if every teacher can develop himself as a real educator, and only then will the students be able to receive a real education.

It cannot be denied that there has been a major decline in education in our state from the primary to the secondary level recently. The stage that should be given higher priority in order to improve the quality of education has been neglected in our state. As a result, education has deteriorated and been adversely affected. Needless to say, if the foundation itself is weak, it will never be possible to improve the quality of education as a whole. Therefore, teachers should be recruited in each school according to the needs with proper consideration to improve the quality of education. Teachers must be made great with proper training. The most important issue is the lack of teachers in many educational institutions in our state. Some schools have science teachers but no art teachers. In some schools, the opposite picture occurs again in another school. As a result, although various steps have been taken to improve education, the desired results have not been achieved. As per the policy of the Central Government, the teacher-student ratio is 1:30 in primary, 1:35 in upper primary, and 1:40 in secondary. This means that one teacher should be recruited for every thirty to forty students from primary school to secondary school, respectively. But is this equal arrangement maintained in the educational institutions of Assam? Have well-planned schemes been implemented in this regard? Today, one of the most discussed issues at the primary level is the recruitment of class-wise teachers. There are still many primary schools in rural areas with more than forty students but only two teachers. The headmaster is busy with everything from shopping for lunch to various office tasks. He has to attend various departmental discussions and meetings at different times. Therefore, most of the time, the assistant has to teach all the classes of the school, from class ‘Ka’ to class V, and take care of all aspects of the students. Everyone can understand how effective teaching and learning will be in such circumstances. There is no reason why a teacher should teach six classes at the same time. There are also many schools where the number of teachers is relatively higher than the number of students. Everyone has already acknowledged that proper development of primary education in Assam will not be possible unless teachers are recruited class-wise or proportionate to grade at the primary level. There is a need to take immediate action on all these issues. 

In 2017, the Government of Assam adopted a scheme to assess the quality of schools in schools from class I to class VIII through an assessment called ‘Gunotsav’. Our state is the second state in India to celebrate Gunotsav. Our state government has implemented the Gunotsav program with the objective of improving the quality of primary and upper primary education, attracting people towards the government education system, and spreading a message of hope, and it has been successful. The results of the Gunotsav, which was conducted in four phases with the aim of identifying educational gaps and taking diagnostic education measures, have already been published. Government schools are not suitable for receiving education; there is no possibility of any change in the education system in government schools. Taking this into consideration, it is appropriate to take steps to improve government schools and to continue these efforts in the future. This will lead to progress in the field of education.

In fact, the most flawed and offensive aspect of the education system in Assam is the system of formulation, publication, and distribution of textbooks. All the measures taken so far in the name of textbook reform seem to have been done for experimentation. There is also widespread talk that the examination methodology and all the work that needs to be done up until the announcement of the results are flawed. However, to encourage students, laptops are provided to students who secured places or star marks in high school examinations; scooters are provided to higher secondary students; bicycles are distributed to poor students; free clothes are provided to class VIII; merit scholarships are provided; schemes, etc. are quite encouraging. Although a number of schemes have been adopted and implemented by the government, there is a need for the government to be aware of whether these schemes are being implemented in a timely manner. It is essential to ensure that students do not see the picture of corruption and irregularities at the school level in the interest of future generations. In the field of secondary education, the Mudaliar Commission (1952–53), the Kothari Commission (1964–66), and the National Education Policy (1986), formed after independence in Assam, have been trying to make the development of education interesting. That has been discussed at all levels.

In conclusion, it can be said that it is very important for conscious educated people, parents, and the teaching community to come together to bring to life this primary and secondary level education system, which is the foundation of life, and the Education Department should also come forward to take a well-planned system of schemes to remove the anarchies in the academic world.

(The Writer is CRCC of Nalbari Cluster, Biswanath Education Block, Education Department, Assam)