Mizoram On Education Reforms Mission

Aizawl, Mar 2 : Mizoram, which boasts of being the second most literate state in India, has embarked upon an education reforms mission, with a group of experts (GoE) having submitted its report to Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla.

In its endeavour to improve the education scenario of Mizoram, the state government had set up the Mizoram Education Reforms Commission (MERC) in 2009 which submitted its recommendations in July last year. The group of experts (GoE) was set up last year to study the MERC recommendations.

Mizoram was the first state in India to form an education reforms commission.

The Chief Minister, who received the GoEs report, expressed the hope that the report, which is the first-of-its-kind in the country, will be a benchmark as no other state in India has ventured to set up an Education Reforms Commission.

The GoE has classified the recommendations into short-term (urgent), short-term, medium and long-term objectives, to be implemented within five years, ten years and more than ten years respectively. The Commission suggested recruitment of only trained teachers asking the state government to train all the untrained teachers within the next five years and set up more B Ed colleges in the district capitals.

It asked the government to allocate an annual budget of Rs 50 lakh for teachers training, and Rs 5 lakh for teachers welfare which should be added with Rs 50,000 each year. While asking the government to stop recruitment of teachers on contract basis, the GoE recommended introduction of CPF/EPF for teachers working in private schools.

It also recommended making special privileges for government teachers posted in remote areas and suggested that for the improvement of higher education, 20 per cent of the education budget was sought for infrastructural development purpose. It also recommended introducing an education cess at the rate of 3 per cent and allocation of at least 10 per cent of the state gross domestic product for improvement of education. Difurcation of the school education into elementary education and secondary education, was suggested.

The panel felt it necessary to survey and investigate the process of fee collection, recruitment of teachers, their performances in many private schools across the state. It also asked the Mizoram University to take steps so that colleges under its jurisdiction get accreditation from NAAC and a task force be set up to study colleges who have below 200 students in its enrollment. Asking the government to create a separate budget for each college, the GoE also recommended introduction of Mizoram Education Service for school teachers and Mizoram Higher Technical Education Service for college teachers.

The GoE supported the government initiative of Special Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) for the unskilled and disqualified teachers and suggested the teachers to at least do open distance education in case the teacher is found not qualified.

The Commission also recommended establishment of Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in all the districts, and setting up of more polytechnics, community colleges, more vocational school and Kendriya Vidyalayas, Jowahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, Sainik School, Sports school in the state. Setting up colleges and schools under PPP mode with experts from outside the state, was also suggested.

Putting emphasis on English language, the GoE recommended establishment of language laboratory and recommended English as a medium of teaching from class six onwards and suggested making Hindi a compulsory subject up to class ten and as elective subject in higher secondary and college. Supporting the governments policy of Continuous Comprehensive Education, the GoE recommended grading system instead of marking system in elementary schools and introduction of semester system in schools.

The GoE report also endeavored to make Mizoram the most literate state in India.

''A wide spectrum of issues such as quality of education in relation to academic achievement of students and performance level of schools, drastic reduction of school dropout, overhauling the system of governance have been reflected in the report,'' GoE chairman R Laltawnga, a retired president of Mizoram Board of School Education, said.