Educational context

Types of schools in Assam

The Department of Education of the Government of Assam is divided into the separate Directorates of Elementary, Secondary, and Higher Education, which are in-charge, respectively, of grades I-VII (age group 6-14), grades VIII-XII (age group 15-18) and undergraduate degrees and above (Table 2.1). The Directorate of Elementary Education (DEE) is responsible for administration control, development, and expansion, inspection, supervision, monitoring and evaluation of elementary education in Assam. The DEE is also entrusted with the operationalization of plan schemes such as Midday Meal, scholarships, and other incentives programs. It is interesting to observe that while the Directorate of Elementary Education is responsible for more administrative and managerial issues, the Directorate of Secondary Education (DSE) additionally concerns itself with equity, quality and institutional reforms (GoA). Furthermore, the Directorate of Secondary Education is

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also responsible for Administration of Recognized Private Schools under the Assam Non-Government Educational Institutions (Regulation & Management) Act, 2016.

Table (2.1): Levels of Education Provision in Assam

Level of education Age group (in Years)

Governing body

Primary (Class I-V) 6-10 The Directorate of

Elementary Education Upper primary/ middle

(class VI-VIII)

11-13

Secondary (class IX-X)

14-15 Directorate of Elementary Education (until age 14) and partly Directorate of Secondary Education Senior secondary

(classes XI-XII) or pre- university/Junior colleges aged

16-17 Directorate of Secondary Education

Undergraduate degree 18 and above Directorate of Higher Education

Source:

Government of Assam, Department of Education Website

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The schools in Assam are affiliated either to State Education Board, Assam (SEBA), or to the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), or to the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE). The last of these has only a handful of schools in the state, so it will not be discussed further. The state-affiliated schools have a regional or sub-national focus in their curriculum, whereas the central government-affiliated schools (popularly called Kendriya Vidyalaya or KVs) are national in the content of their curriculum and the organization of the school around ‘nationalist’ symbols, such as the national anthem, the national language (Hindi) and so on. Central schools usually attract a wide diversity of students from a socio-cultural and economic standpoint, because they are designed to give uniform education to the children of all central government employees in transferable jobs.

Drawing the typologies from Mehrotra et al (2006) by the type of management, schools in Assam can be classified as follows. This classification will be integral in thinking about the differences in the five schools that were part of the study.

a) GOVERNMENT AIDED SCHOOLS:

➢ Assam State run Government Schools: These are funded and administered by the Directorate(s) of Education (DEE or DSE). The medium of instruction in these schools is typically Assamese. These include middle, secondary, and senior secondary schools affiliated with the Government of Assam through the various governing bodies as discussed in Table 2.1. Three of the five schools in my study namely Northern School, Meadow School and Sanctuary School fall under this category.

➢ Provincialized Schools: These are schools started by the community or by individuals in a community, but once they reach the norms of size, student enrolment, teacher recruitment, infrastructure and so on, they are adopted by the state government under the recent Assam Venture Educational Institutions (Provincialization of Services) Bill, 2011. Once provincialized, these schools then become eligible for grants, aids, and benefits under government-run schemes. Keleidoscope Madrassa School in my sample belongs to this category.

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➢ Union (Central Government)-run Schools or Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs): Kendriya Vidyalayas were established in the year 1963-64, on the recommendation of the Second Central Pay Commission, as a welfare measure for the employees who are transferable throughout the country. It marked the beginning of a new era for the education of the children of Union Government Employees who could not refuse to go on transfer, and at the same time could not allow the studies of their wards to be disrupted. They are managed by the

Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan that comes under the Union Government. There are no schools in this category in my sample, but given my schooling was in a K.V, they have greatly shaped my understanding of the educational context.

b) Private-Aided Schools: These are run by private organizations and affiliate to the state government either through SEBA or through CBSE. These government bodies are based in Guwahati and Delhi, and they are engaged in imparting education at all levels of schooling in Assam. These organizations receive aid in the form of maintenance grants from the Government of Assam, meant to help them meet their expenditure on education (approximately 95%). This aid is largely given for the payment of salaries, allowances, and the provident fund of the employees of the school. There is no private aided school in my sample.

c) Private/ unaided Private Schools: Run by registered trusts and societies. These schools are affiliated with the state or central government either through SEBA or CBSE. But these organizations do not receive any financial support from the government. Also, the students from these schools are not eligible for any benefits, unlike the students from government-run schools. Missionaries run many private unaided schools in the state; one such example is City School in my sample. Though it is not a part of my sample, I also visited a new unaided English Medium school that has been founded in Nagaon, called Iqra Academy. It is recognized by CBSE and teaches forms I-VIII. It also features an additional religious module for the students, according to the Chairman heading the trust that runs the school (Fieldnotes, 11th Jan 2014).

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A parallel educational system also operates in the state under the Board of Madrassa Education. During the colonial period, the Provincial Government of Assam established the Madrassa Education Board in 1934 in Sylhet. After the Independence, the institution was renamed as the State Madrassas Education Board, Assam. Some key distinctions need to be made about the contemporary organization of Madrassa education in the state. Madrassas in Assam can be divided broadly into two categories: a) Govt. Affiliated Madrassas- Government-run madrassas are mainly of two types: first, there are the Middle English Madrassas, and then there are the High Madrassa. The former imparts education at a Middle School level, while the latter offers education at a High School level. These schools-cum-madrassas have been functioning since the end of the first quarter of the twentieth century, and come under the umbrella of general education governed through the two Directorates of Education as appropriate. They mainly impart general education, while an additional religious subject is taught in these institutions (Khan 2010). Mostly Muslim students go to these schools, though this depends on the availability of schools locally; many non-Muslims also enroll in Middle and High Madrassas. The Madrassa Board does not govern these schools. Secondly, there are ex-venture schools, or community schools, which get affiliated to the government once they attain certain standards regarding some students, teachers, and infrastructure, etc. under the Assam Madrassa Education (Provincialization) Act, 1995. Many private or not–government-run Madrassas in Assam have been taken over by the State Government in recent times. Of the 707 Madrassas in Assam, 74 are provincialized, and 633 are recognized by the State Government.

b) Non-Government Or ‘Qaumi’ Or ‘Khariji’ Madrassas: The second type of madrassas have three-tier setups: Title Madrassas, Senior Madrassas, and Pre-Senior Madrassas. Many of the non-government Madrassas have been provincialized by the government of Assam as already mentioned; these institutions developed in the post- independence period. Religious education is the core of the curriculum in these madrassas, while general education is given only partial importance (Khan, 2010). These schools are governed by a Madrassa board. One of the schools in my sample is a Senior Madrassa which has recently been provincialized by the Government of Assam. While it gets to maintain the religiously-oriented curriculum sanctioned by the

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Madrassa education board, it can claim government funded schemes such as the midday meal, free uniforms, and books.