KOTTAYAM: The NSS, which came down heavily on the M A Khader Committee’s recommendations for the unification of secondary and senior secondary school education, has called upon the government to ignore the committee’s report. NSS general secretary G Sukumaran Nair said the government is trying to implement the report unilaterally under the cover of the Centre’s Right to Education(RTE) Act .
According to Nair, if indeed the recommendations are implemented, the public education sector will be ruined. “It is not a logical move to restructure the 10+2+3 structure in haste. The higher secondary education system, which enables students to study the subjects of their choice, needs to be regarded as a separate segment. It is evident that the Khader Committee made the recommendations without factoring in the findings on the growth and mental development aspects of students,” he said.
The unification will lead to simplification of the existing curriculum, resulting in the failure of students in competitive examinations as well as attrition of students from the public schools.NSS also voiced concern at the appointment of Panchayat Education Officers. This shall lead to the development of educational projects according to the political interests of grama panchayats.
The fixation of vacancies considering Class VIII to Class XII as one unit will lead to an indirect ban on recruitment of teachers. Similarly, the concentration of power as recommended by the report will create divisions among the secondary and higher secondary employees. Hence, the government should rethink its decision.