BENGALURU: POINTING to the high dropout rate of 22.1% among high school students in Karnataka, which is much higher than the national average of 14.1%, the People’s Alliance for Fundamental Right to Education (PAFRE) has written to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, asking him to focus on solving “long-term” problems in the education system instead of blaming officials for the poor SSLC results.
PAFRE welcomed the CM’s concern, expressed during a recent review meeting, over the fall in SSLC pass percentages, especially in backward regions like Kalyana Karnataka. However, the group said that reprimanding education officers alone won’t help improve results. Instead, it stressed the need to improve the overall learning system from Class 1 to Class 10, especially in government and aided schools where most children come from poor and disadvantaged families.
Chief convenor of the group Professor Niranjanaradhya VP explained that exam results are just the final stage and if children do not receive quality education and support from the beginning, expecting better results is unfair. He added that the current system does not give students the learning environment, teachers, and leadership.
“Karnataka’s high school dropout rate must be addressed immediately if the government wants to see long-term improvements,” he said.
The RTE group asked the state government to prepare a three-year action plan to bring all schools up to standard.