CHENNAI: Admissions in class 1 in government primary schools have reduced by over 30,000 students, according to data obtained from School Education Department.
As opposed to 3.23 lakh students who were admitted into class 1 in government schools last year, less than three lakh students were admitted this year. This is about a 10 per cent decrease in admissions. The admissions will remain open until September 30 and final data will be compiled only after that.
Admissions will, however, not improve drastically during this time, as schools have already begun their academic year over three months ago, said a source from the School Education Department. “The admissions have reduced not only in class 1, but also in class 6,” the source said adding that there is a similar decrease in enrolment in government-aided schools as well.
According to data, there is about a nine per cent decline in admissions in class 1 of government-aided schools too. Students, who had joined private elementary schools and who cannot afford private middle school fees, usually join government schools, instead.The reduction in admissions in government schools reflects in increase in admissions in private schools, said an official from School Education Department, who did not want to be named.
According to the official, the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which facilitates admissions for disadvantaged students in private schools, is a major reason behind the decline. “If there are large private schools with a strength of over thousand in an area, it attracts the admissions that government schools would have gotten without RTE. Now more private schools have come up in the area to compensate the reduction in available private seats and therefore, more RTE seats are generated,” he said, adding that students who do their kindergarten in private schools may continue studying there.
Although there is a reduction in admissions in these schools, the gross enrolment ratio has been improving and drop-out rate is decreasing. This only means that more students have been opting for private education. “We have launched several campaigns across the State to attract more admissions in government schools,” said a senior official from the School Education department, adding that final enrolment data will be available in October.