Dropout rates persist at secondary level; govt pins hope on targeted interventions

SHILLONG, May 4: Dropout rates at the secondary school level continue to pose a challenge in Meghalaya, particularly due to students’ inability to clear the SSLC examinations.
Education Minister Rakkam A Sangma acknowledged the issue and outlined the government’s multipronged response aimed at addressing both academic and infrastructural barriers.
“This is true. In the secondary level, most of the students drop out because they could not clear the SSLC examination for various reasons,” the education minister said.
He cited a range of possible factors, saying, “Maybe they are not well-versed with the concept of the topic, maybe the questions were tough, maybe there are no good teachers? The reason could be anything.”
To aid students in subjects typically seen as challenging, the Education Department has introduced QR code-enabled textbooks for mathematics and science. “For all the challenges, we have reduced QR code textbooks for Mathematics and Science to supplement them,” Sangma said.
He added that this year’s SSLC pass percentage stood at 87 percent, while students in the ICSE stream “performed very well”.
While attributing the problem to a variety of causes, including economic difficulties and lack of access to schools, the education minister maintained that the government is actively working toward solutions.
“Of course we know where the problem is and we know where to step up. Economic factor, school distance challenges are many and we are trying bit by bit to address the issue,” he stated.
According to the education minister, one major gap remains the absence of higher secondary schools in many rural areas. “In some rural area no higher secondary school and they cannot afford to go beyond, and that is why we are upgrading secondary schools to higher secondary schools,” he said.
Beyond infrastructure, Sangma noted the psychological and logistical challenges students face when trying to continue their education.
“The problem is they don’t have platform to take admission,” he said, adding that the government is placing emphasis on motivation. We are encouraging and motivating both teachers and students.”
According to the education minister, the overarching goal is to create a conducive learning environment that allows students to envision a future in higher education.
“The crux of the matter is we should make the state a good atmosphere for study. If Shillong can offer good study atmosphere, the students will aspire to come to Shillong for higher education,” he said.