January 19, 2002	Saturday	Ziqa'ad 4, 1422

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NAUSHAHRO FEROZE, Jan 18: About 175 primary and 10 middle schools are closed in the district for shortage of schoolteachers or non-implementation of transfer/posting orders.

Sources say the orders for teachers’ transfer and posting are not implemented because either the political leaders peddle their influence or the strong teachers’ organisations interfere in the matter.

Talking to Dawn, residents of village Ghai Khan Waswani, near Padidan, said that Govt Girls’ Primary School, Ghai Khan Waswani, was closed for the past one year and a half. As all efforts to get it reopened failed, the villagers took up the matter with provincial ombudsman.

The Ombudsman of Sindh directed the district education department that a local woman be given preference when a teacher is appointed in the future, so that the school stayed open. But, said the residents, that directive went unheeded.

They said at the time of sending a list of closed schools due to shortage of teachers to the higher authorities, this school was shown as open in the record by the officials concerned.

The villagers said a local woman was not appointed in this school when fresh recruitment was made in July, 2001, precisely for this reason.

When at long last, a teacher was appointed for the school, she did not report on duty. No action was taken against the lady teacher either.

Efforts again began in earnest to get teachers for the school as villagers’ children were losing their precious time. Two women teachers, resident of nearest town Padidan, were finally posted to the school on Dec 12, 2001. The two are yet to resume their duties. Several requests were made to the department seeking their action to get these transfer orders complied, but to no avail.

The sources, requesting anonymity, said political influence played a key part in these transfer orders not being implemented.

They said in some schools, the number of teachers and students bore no sense of proportion. For example, in Moro Taluka school, there are 22 teachers for a students’ strength of 175. Likewise, at Govt Primary School for Girls, Naushahro Feroze, some 30 teachers are posted for 350 students. This disproportionate teacher-student ratio is maintained in several schools of the district.

In some places, it appeared as if the people still lived an existence of 1960s when school buildings were used as Otaqs by local waderas.

In village Malkani and village Shafi Muhammad Buriro, there are two school buildings each. In both the villages, one building is used for school purposes, while the other is put to private use.

There are about 200 boys primary schools in the district. Many of these have seen their quality of education decline due to a bizarre teacher-student ratio. In some schools, there are 10 teachers for 20 students. While in others, there are three teachers where students number 80.

Another reason for this disbalance in student-teacher strength is teacher organisations’ meddling in the transfer and posting matters.

There are 45 boys high schools and 56 boys middle schools in the district.