KARIMNAGAR: Many government schools across the State have been closing down due to less number of students as parents prefer sending their children to private schools for better education. The story of the Government Primary School in Kharkanagadda, Karimnagar, however, is different. It is one of the few government schools in Telangana that has put up ‘admissions closed’ sign following a huge enrollment for the new academic year.
Teachers here say that they enrolled at least 150 new students in the school, where the medium of instruction has been English for the last six years. Most of the admissions were made under the ‘Badi Bata’ programme. Parents of most of the students, who were seeking admission at the school, had to secure recommendations of some prominent and influential people in the city. As of now, there are more than 350 students enrolled in the primary school.
“Parents who are unable to pay higher fees in private schools have been sending their children to our school,” says school headmaster K Bhadru Naik. “We have been teaching in English medium from Classes 1 to 5 for the last six years,” he adds. Presently, the headmaster informs, there are 90 students each in Class 4 and Class 5. Several other facilities such as the midday meals are available for the students.
Even though there are only five teachers in this school, they have been preparing the children to perform at par with those in private schools. Students coming from Telugu medium or other schools undergo ‘Bridge Course’ training to help them adapt with the curriculum.