Initiative to ensure robust linkages for academic improvement
*Schools to be graded as per Performance Index
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Jan 8: In a major initiative aimed at ensuring greater and robust linkages between various stakeholders for affordable and quality education for all, School Clusters are being formulated across the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir as per the provisions of the National Education Policy 2020. Moreover, schools will be graded at the end of every academic session as per the Performance Index.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that the concept of School Complexes/Clusters originated from the Kothari Commission Report and the same has been illustrated in Chapter 7 of the National Education Policy 2020, the basic concept of which is “efficient resources and effective governance”.
The concept has been mooted as an innovation in the school education based on the fact that High and Higher Secondary Schools have better laboratory, library and other facilities related to technology and human resource that can be utilized by the Primary and Middle Schools.
“A School Complex is organized by taking a group of Elementary Schools, High Schools, a Training School and a Technical School etc as per convenience, availability and the topography of the area and these institutions will function cooperatively for the improvement of their educational standards”, they said, adding “these School Complexes can get their academic and administrative support from the Nodal Secondary/Senior Secondary School and the schools falling within the complex may arrange curricular, co-curricular activities, give better exposure to their students at the School Complex rather than taking up the matter at block or district level”.
About the organizational structure of the School Complex/Cluster, sources said that Joint Director, School Education Department of the concerned district is responsible for overall working of the schools in the cluster and Principal of Higher Secondary School is the head of the School Complex and accountable for overall academic activities of the schools in the complex/cluster. In case School Complex falls in more than one zone the complex head will be competent to deploy the resources/teachers within the complex.
The School Complex/Cluster will ensure adequate number of teachers (shared or otherwise) for teaching all subjects, use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools to conduct virtual classes; adequate resources (shared or otherwise) such as library, science labs, computer labs, skill labs, playgrounds, sports equipment and other facilities across School Complexes.
“Further the initiative will ensure sense of community through joint professional development programmes, sharing of teaching-learning content, joint content development, holding joint activities such as art and science exhibitions, sports meets etc”, sources said, adding “moreover, the move will ensure greater and robust linkages between various stakeholders for academic improvement, improve infrastructure outlook of schools and development of learners through various activities”.
Moreover, a provision of Academic Monitoring Committee has been kept for imparting academic support to schools and to capture progress through a properly devised format on the basis of which School Performance Index will be compiled. The committee will also record training needs of the teachers of the cluster and communicate the recommendations to DIETs for necessary action.
The Academic Monitoring Committee has been entrusted with the task of strengthening the relationship in complex through facilitative and coordinated efforts to improve the quality of education by formulating innovative process for improving methods of teaching-learning. Further, the committee will focus on improving the foundational literacy and numeracy in order to make the pre-primary and primary education a qualitative and result oriented.
At the end of every academic session one of the Elementary Schools will be judged as the “School of the Year” at Zonal, District and Divisional Level based on School Performance Index which will be based on online academic monitoring of school tracking. Subsequently, this will help in grading the schools like Green (schools where learning levels are good), Yellow (schools where learning levels are average) and Red (schools where learning levels are below average and need remediation).
The respective Directors of the School Education have been directed by the Government to take monthly review of all the Chief Education Officers to review progress and functioning of School Complexes/Clusters.
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