Meghalaya’s Education Minister Rakkam Sangma has acknowledged that student drop-out at the secondary level is very high and warrants a number of interventions. The minister attributed this to several factors which included poverty and dearth of capable teachers many of whom are still untrained and more schools in rural Meghalaya. In 2021-22 Meghalaya recorded the highest percentage of school dropouts at the secondary level at 21.7% which is the highest in the country and way above the national average of 12.6%. This year, courtesy the CM Impact guide book the pass percentage at the SSLC level went up to 87%. The guide book helped bridge the gap caused by poor teaching-learning outcomes. Communication skills are integral to being a teacher. Poor communication skills lead to poor learning outcomes. Teachers who fail to communicate in a manner that the students grasps what she/he is trying to say must take th blame for the students’ failure. When such a teacher is allowed to continue in a permanent position, batch after batch of students suffer for several decades. Permanency of tenure in the teaching profession is one important reason leading to students’ lack of interest in their studies.
Most teachers lack empathy and don’t show reach out to students needing special hand-holding and mentoring because of problems at home. Today, with so much information available, what students need are mentors and counsellors who they can turn to if only to share their personal concerns and the obstacles in their journeys. Teaching does not begin and end with communicating what’s in the text books and conducting examinations. There is so much that teachers and students can discuss within the classroom. It is in the classroom that ideas are seeded and discussions on a wide range of topics can happen so that students are better able to apply those learnings in their day to day living. It is because what’s learnt in the classroom is not applicable to their daily lives that students begin to feel a sense of alienation. They need to know how to resolve conflicts through discussion and debates. Students in rural Meghalaya do a lot of physical work after school hours apart from helping their parents in the farm. Hence agricultural training should be part of the school curriculum too. The problem with the school curriculum is that it is tailored to meet only the needs of the urban students.
Another problem is the lack of high and higher secondary schools to meet the needs of rural students. After passing their SSLC students need to enrol themselves in schools that are located several kilometers away. This disincentivises parents who need to invest in a rented accommodation for their children and also have to leave them to fend for themselves. In its vision document for 2020-21 to 2024-25, the Government has outlined its priorities towards education by creating Eklavya schools which can provide hostel facilities. There is a great need for such schools especially for poor students who are also the ones that are forced to drop out and start working.
