Hyderabad: While pass percentages in state board exams are peaking, the ground realities seem to be something else.
A government survey of about 442 private schools in Telangana State unearthed some harsh realities. Only about 60.4 per cent of students from Class VI to Class X can read and comprehend English passages while only 70 per cent can actually read English.
The teachers seem to be doing worse as the survey found that only 30 per cent teachers were able to answer all the questions perfectly in a sample test on the subject they taught while 70 per cent had never even read the textbooks completely.
The survey was carried out by the State Council of Educational Research and Training and other government institutions in 442 private schools, of which 367 were English medium schools.
About 78,000 students from Class VI to Class X and nearly 10,000 teachers were covered in the massive survey in Telangana State.
The survey found that only 70.3 per cent students could read English, of whom, 60.4 per cent could comprehend what they read. Again only 65.5 per cent students could read Telugu and of them just 58.1 per cent could comprehend it. Only 57.7 per cent students could perform divisions in mathematics.
The survey also found that, though inadequate, about 90 per cent of private schools had toilets. But girls usually did not use these toilets for fear of infections.
Officials also found that corporal punishment was a reality in most schools and most teachers even carried sticks with them all the time.
“Corporal punishment is very prevalent. Even government officials like the district education officer, who should be monitoring these schools and give academic suggestions, actually seem to be visiting schools for “different reasons” altogether,” a senior official, who was part of the survey, said.
