Civic schools think English
Smita Deshmukh
In an attempt to bring civic schools on a par with private schools, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is planning to introduce English as the medium of instruction in its 85 schools across the city.
The education committee will go through the proposal before it is submitted to BMC. The new sections will be opened in the existing buildings of the civic schools in 24 wards. A minimum of three schools in each ward will now have English medium sections.
The civic administration operates 1,234 schools in the city. Of these, 45 have English as the medium of instruction and the rest have Marathi, Gujarati, Kannada and Urdu. Officials say language, poor infrastructure and academic results have resulted in dwindling numbers in civic schools.
The civic body wants to use English — along with multimedia classes, playgrounds and libraries — to attract students. “Every parent wants to give his child the best in education and people living in slums are no different. Our aim is to upgrade the schools to ensure there is no distinction in quality of education,” said Manu Srivastava, additional municipal commissioner (projects).
Also, the administration wants to provide quality teaching staff and remove discrimination. An advisory board comprising educationists, social workers and NGOs will be set up in each ward to monitor the functioning of schools. “We are in the process of finalising the board’s role,” said Srivastava.
“We have forwarded details of NGOs and experienced educationists who can suggest systemic changes,” said Vinay Somani, convener, NGO Council. Somani said the authorities should make use of the opportunity to create a professional system of management, have teachers’ salaries and tenures linked to performance to be evaluated by an independent board.
Others like the Rotary Club of Mumbai mid-west, which has adopted Shivner school in Saki Naka, Andheri, too is keen to work with the civic body. “This school was started by two retired bus conductors. We have now taken it to the SSC level. We want to help BMC in upgrading civic schools,” said Kishore Master, Club president.