By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, July 14: The state government on Friday constituted the State Education Commission which will be headed by Prof SM Sungoh of the Department of Education, NEHU.
The Commission has two advisors: former UPSC chairman Prof David Reid Syiemlieh and former executive member of MBoSE TTC Marak. Ambrose Marak, the Secretary of Education Department, is its member secretary.
The Commission, with a term of two years, has been assigned various responsibilities.
According to a government notification, the Commission will advise the government on matters related to school and college system, salary structures, school management functioning and accountability.
It will recommend concrete solutions, make strategic interventions and formulate policy decisions to bring about reforms in the school and higher education system. These reforms will align with the perspective of NEP 2020 and fulfill its principles and articulation.
The Commission will also recommend reforms and policy changes to promote quality education in schools, colleges and institutions of higher and technical education.
Additionally, the Commission will address major issues impacting the education sector on matters relating to management of aided schools and colleges, their performance concerning general administrative functioning, operation and accountability of SMCs.
It will also consider the consolidation of the different categories of aided schools and colleges and suggest systems for granting and/or upgrading aided status of schools.
Furthermore, the Commission has been tasked to look into the establishment of effective mechanisms to ensure pay parity of government teachers under different aided categories.
It will look into the issue concerning rationalisation of schools, especially with regards to unviable schools, surplus schools, low enrolment schools (zero enrolment/single digit enrolment), single teacher schools.
The Commission will study the problems relating to availability of language teachers, especially in border areas, and analyse the existing situation, gaps and issues in depth of the problem areas of the Education Department.
“Put forward recommendations that will bring about long-term and large-scale improvements and solutions in the problem areas. Formulate principles and guidelines that will streamline and improve the condition in the problem areas of the Department,” the notification said.
The Commission can recommend policy changes wherever applicable upon study of policy change proposals submitted by state government or expert groups or agencies.
It will update the Meghalaya State Education Policy to be in sync with the NEP 2020 and issue guidance/suggestions on syllabus and curriculum framework for the schools.
There are 12 co-opted members in the Commission. They are Dr CAR Diengdoh, retired CDC of NEHU; Dr Vanessa Kharmawphlang, Principal, CTE (PGT) Shillong; Dr Nikme Salse Ch. Momin, Professor, NEHU, Tura campus; P Ryngksai, retired Additional Director of School Education & Literacy; Dr Charles Rueben Lyngdoh, Associate Professor, Synod College, Shillong; Sanggra A Sangma, Associate Professor, Department of History, Don Bosco College, Tura; Rahul Chatterjee, Assistant Lecturer (Physics), Jail Road Boys’ Higher Secondary School, Shillong; Br. Solomon T Morris, Principal, St. Edmund’s School, Shillong; Richard Uriah, Principal, North Liberty Higher Secondary School, Jowai; FC Shullai, retired primary school teacher; Aaron Warjri, Principal of Shillong Public School; and Dr (Fr) Philip Abraham SJ, Principal Loyola College & Loyola Higher Secondary School, Williamnagar.