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Journalism of Courage
CHANDIGARH, JULY 27: Nearly 93 per cent of the students of Government High School Mauli Colony, a UT rural high school, failed their Class X exams this year; the school’s pass percentage was just 7.14 per cent. This is a dramatic increase from the school’s 1998 last year’s failure rate of 62.5 per cent.
Of the 5,230 candidates who took the Class X examinations in UT’s government schools this year, only 51.05 per cent have cleared the examinations. Of this, the average pass percentage of the government non-model schools is 30.04 per cent against the pass percentage of 84.61 per cent of the government model schools. (See box)
Education Secretary N. K. Jain attributes the low pass percentage in rural schools to a variety of factors: "There is some lapse on the part of teachers and maybe the Administration that results in the poor performance of the students in the rural areas."
He said that the Administration is taking steps to improve the quality of education in these areas. "In urban areas, parents also take a keen interest in the studies of their child; this factor, which is of great help, is missing in the rural areas."
He said that programmes involving greater interaction of teachers and parents would be beneficial in raising the pass percentage.
However, of the 4,247 private school students who appeared for Class X examinations, 77.94 per cent have cleared the exams. Out of these, five schools, namely Mount Carmel Sector 46, DAV Public School, Sector 8, St. John’s, Sector 26, Bhawan Vidyalaya, Sector 27 and Carmel Convent have registered an impressive 100 per cent result.
Commenting on the quality of facilities available to school students, District Education Officer Brahmjit Kalia said: "We have provided all sorts of facilities to the schools in rural areas but still there is charm for the schools in urban areas. This is the reason that students from as far as Kharar seek admission in the UT’s private or model schools."
