CHENNAI: The state government has released Tamil Nadu Private Schools (Regulation) Rules, 2023 for all self-financing schools, from play to higher secondary schools.
The rules include application procedures for establishing self-financing private schools, renewal of recognition, regulation of admissions, the constitution of the school committee and the safety of students, among others.
State secretary of Tamil Nadu Nursery, Primary and Matriculation Higher Secondary School Association KR Nandakumar welcomed the move and said, "Earlier, Madras Education Rules were used for regulating the private schools and there were separate rules for different boards, but everything has been merged into this new rules. The amount of land required to establish schools in various areas, including villages, town panchayats, and municipalities has been reduced. However, the government could have invited suggestions from the administrations of the private schools to ensure that the rules are more comprehensive."
In order to ensure the safety of the students, the rules state that no pupil should be subjected to physical punishment, threats or mental harassment on any account.
"Teachers should not use derogatory remarks, verbal or written, which may have a negative impact on the self-esteem of a child. They should not humiliate or disgrace the child in private or in the presence of others, especially in the presence of their fellow students," it stated.
It also stated conduct guidelines for the staff of the private schools and said that headmasters could leave the school premises only after ensuring that all pupils have left the premises.
The rules further stated that private schools run by educational agencies, apart from minority schools, should constitute a school committee with the approval of the concerned District Educational Officer, while the educational agency maintaining more than one private school may with the prior permission of the competent authority have a common School Committee.
"The committee should comprise headmasters of the schools, senior teachers, non-teaching staff and members of parent-teachers associations," the rules added.