SCHOOL BUILDING, MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION, LIBRARY, LABORATORY AND TEACHERS.
In a school complex school plant, library, laboratory and teacher constitute essential integral parts. While the First Survey did not cover library or the laboratory, in the Second Survey although school building, medium of instruction, teacher and laboratory were covered the information collected was very limited. In the Third Survey while all the above mentioned areas have been covered, school building and medium of instruction have been covered exhaustively and a separate schedule has been canvassed for teachers library and laboratory have been covered in a detailed way. While separate reports on school buildings, languages and media of instruction and teachers are being brought out, another report on library, laboratory, science equipment along with students possessing textbooks is under preparation. However, to make a self-contained report on all aspects of school education covered in this Survey some salient features on the above mentioned areas are presented in this chapter.
School buildings Under the subject only the condition and ownerships of the buildings have been discussed. The condition of the school buildings are classified as pucka, partly pucka, kuchcha, thatched huts, tents and open space. Of course these concepts are as per local specifications and no norm had been presented centrally. In all categories the number of non-response cased were also enumerated and it is observed that such cases are more numerous in urban areas than in the rural ones at all stages of schools.
Examining the ownership of the building it is noted that there is a provision in the Grant-in-Aid Rules in some states to meet the rental value of the schools, if the buildings are hired and receipts are produced. Hence many schools even though own their buildings produce receipts to recover the rents from the authorities.
Primary The schools with pucka buildings at this stage are only 52.65% i.e. 2, 39,921 out of 4,55,729. But the proportion of schools having pucka buildings is higher in urban areas (76.84%) as against rural areas (50.22%). Another 9.33% schools are housed in partly pucka buildings. Of course the number of schools working in kuchcha houses, thatched huts and open area is more in rural areas and the proprotion occupying tents is higher in urban areas.
At this stage about 68.4% schools own their school buildings while another 16.55% are running in rent free buildings. But the proportion of schools owning school buildings is more in rural areas, about 70%, compared to urban areas, 51.9%. About adequacy only 43.1% schools have adequate space but this provision is more satisfactory in the case of urban schools, 49.2%, as against 42.2% in rural schools.
Middle The position is only slightly better in middle schools although it cannot be claimed as satisfactory. As against 52.65% pucka buildings at the primary stage there are around 60.94% i.e. 55,277 out of 90,681 at middle stage, but the proportion of rural schools (52.22%) having pucka buildings is low when compared with those in urban areas (79.74%). Consequently in other categories the rural schools show a larger proportion of these facilities than those in urban schools.
SCHOOL BUILDING 69
70 THIRD ALL-INDIA EDUCATIONAL SURVEY
MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION 71
At the middle stage many schools own their buildings (76.47%), although rented buildings are more, as compared to rent free buildings. Again in rural areas 80.1% schools own their buildings as against 58.1% schools in urban areas. But about adequacy of the buildings, the position is much better in urban schools i.e. 49.2% urban schools as against 40.7% rural schools.
Secondary About 71.9% of the 33,116 secondary schools are housed in pucka buildings and another 18.5% in partly pucka buildings. But a comparison between rural and urban schools clearly brings out the fact that more urban schools, 84.5%, are in pucka buildings as compared to 66.2% schools in rural areas. Of course, of the remaining number more schools both in rural as well as in urban areas are located in partly pucka buildings.
Around 69.1% of the secondary school buildings are owned. Almost the same position was observed in case of primary schools but the corresponding percentage in case of middle schools was higher. But the proportion of rented buildings, 21.5%, is sizable compared to other categories. As against 73.6% rural schools which own their buildings only 58.8% urban schools have their own buildings. About adequacy, about 58.2% have adequate school buildings, but a larger proportion of urban schools, 62.6% have adequate space as against 56.2% amongst rural schools.
Higher Secondary At this stage, 7,531 (79.23%) of the 9,505 institutions are housed in pucka buildings and another 15.9% in partly pucka buildings. However, the proportion of urban schools having pucka buildings is far higher, 88.2%, compared to schools in rural areas, 67.4%.
The proportion of schools owning their buildings is 73% and another 17.4% are in rented buildings. The difference in the number of schools owning their school buildings in rural and urban areas is marginal. While 73.6% rural schools own their buildings in urban areas the proportion of urban schools owning their school building is 72.6%.
MEDIA OF INSTRUCTION AT SCHOOL STAGES Mother tongue is the natural and easiest medium in which a child can learn. There are 16 recognised regional languages in the country and there is a large mobility in the population amongst the states and the union territory administration. If Article 45 of the Contitution which stipulates free and compulsory education for children up to the age of 14 is to be come a reality it is imperative that at least up to this stage a child should be taught in his own mother tongue. The mobility in population has set a new dimension about minority languages and seeks provision of teaching in schools in these languages also to make Article 45 a reality.
In the present survey, apart from the number of schools/ sections offering regional language as the medium of instruction information about the number of schools/sections having Hindi medium in the Non- Hindi speaking states as also in the other regional languages has been sought which will be discussed in greater detail in a separate report, Languages and Medium of Instruction. In the present write-up informa- tion about the number of schools/sections having provision for number of media at different school stages has been discussed. This information relates to both recognised as well as unrecognised schools in both rural and urban areas. While majority of the schools have one medium or two media, and in some cases even three media, there are very few institutions which have four or more media of instruction. In the following paragraphs the institutions with four or more media of instruction are discussed.
Primary There are 43 primary schools having four or more media of instruction of which 40 schools are in Jammu & Kashmir alone and 2 schools are in A&N Islands and one in Goa, Daman and Diu.
Middle The States, of Andhra Pradesh (1), Jammu & Kashmir (34), Karnataka (1), Maharashtra (20) and Uttar Pradesh (4) have reported middle sections having 4 or more than 4 media of instruction at this stage.
Secondary Andhra Pradesh (1), Jammu & Kashmir (21), Karnataka (1), and Maharashtra (12) have sections with 4 or more than 4 media of instruction.
Higher Secondary/Intermediate sections. Andhra Pradesh (1), Jammu & Kashmir (1), Karnataka (1), Madhya Pradesh (1) and Maharashtra (4) have reported institutions having 4 or more than 4 media of instruction.
Library Being a census servey the coverage on this aspect is limited to the availability of the facility, number of
72 THIRD ALL-INDIA EDUCATIONAL SURVEY
STATEMENT 64
Schools with Library Facility
Category Area Total No. of Schools having Library Percentage of Schools
Schools having Library
1 2 3 4 5
Primary Rural 4,14,151 1,30,981 31.63
Urban 41,578 16,718 40.21
Total 4,55,729 1,47,699 32.41
Middle Rural 75,728 43,678 57.68
Urban 14,953 10,374 69.38
Total 90,681 54,052 59.61
Secondary Rural 22,900 21,584 94.25
Urban 10,216 9,560 93.58
Total 33,116 31,144 94.05
Higher Secondary Rural 4,097 3,906 95.35
Urban 5,408 5,195 96.07
Total 9,505 9,101 95.75
LIBRARY 73
74 THIRD ALL-INDIA EDUCATIONAL SURVEY
STATEMENT 66
Laboratory facilities in various science
General Science Physics Chemistry
Area No. of No. of Adequ- No. of No of Adequ- No. of No. of Adeq-
Schools Labs. ate Schools Labs. ate Schools Labs. uate
Rural 2,007 2,058 1,700 1,973 1,996 1,781 1,811 1,837 1,622
Urban 1,176 1,210 1,072 1,580 1,588 1,452 1,460 2,770 1,337
Total 3,183 3,268 2,772 3,553 3,584 3,233 3,271 4,607 2,959
STATEMENT 67
Number of Higher Secondary Schools according to various
General Science Physics Chemistry
Area No. of No. of Adeq- No. of No. of Adeq- No. of No. of Adeq-
Schools Labs uate Schools Labs uate Schools Labs. uate
Rural 149 159 128 779 785 677 755 759 661
Urban 409 450 358 1,951 1,995 1,771 1,940 1,984 1,758
Total 558 609 486 2,730 2,780 2,448 2,695 2,743 2,419
LABORATORY 75
subjects at the secondary stage.
Biology Home Science Combined Laboratory
No. of No. of Adeq- No. of No. of Adeq- No. of No. of Adeq-
Schools Labs uate Schools Labs uate Schools Labs. uate
1,200 1,209 1,084 171 168 141 11,987 12,124 7,371
1,343 1,347 1,221 465 478 437 6,217 6,370 4,191
2,543 2,556 2,305 636 646 578 18,204 18,494 11,562
laboratories at Higher Secondary Stage
Biology Home Science Combined Laboratory
No. of No. of Adeq- No. of No. of Adeq- No. of No. of Adeq-
Schools Labs uate Schools Labs uate Schools Labs. uate
585 597 510 37 38 32 1,760 1,782 173
1,714 1770 1,544 448 480 406 2,420 2,494 295
2,299 2367 2,054 485 518 438 4,180 4,276 468
76 THIRD ALL-INDIA EDUCATIONAL SURVEY
books possessed, the personnel manning the library, average number of books issued to pupils and to teachers. No attempt has been made about the subjectwise books and other aspects. In the present report only the number of institutions at different school stages having library facilities and the personnel manning them have been presented.
Primary Schools Amongst the 4,55,729 primary schools in the country 1,47,699 (32.41%) schools have reported possessing library facilities. The proportion of schools having this facility is higher in urban areas 40.21%, as against 31.63% in rural schools. In 838 (0.58%) of these schools there are trained librarians and in another 21,182 (14.34%) untrained librarians are working, either full-time or part-time. The others are looked after mostly by teachers (79.65%).
Middle Schools In 54,052 (59.61%) of the 90,681 middle schools library facility is available. Of the schools with library facility, 43,678 are located in rural areas and the remaining 10,374 in urban areas. However the proportion of schools with library facility is more, 69.38%, in urban areas than in rural areas which is 57.68%. In only 369 (0.68%) middle schools there are trained librarians and in another 6,385 (11.81%) untrained librarians who are working either on part- time or full-time basis. Of the remaining 47298 (87.51%), personnel looking after library at this stage, 84.56% are teachers.
Secondary Schools The position in secondary schools is far better than in the previous school stages in that out of 33,116 schools at this stage 31,144 (94.05%) have library facilities in them. Although there is hardly any difference in the proportion of schools having this facility the rural schools, 94.25%, have a slight edge over the 93.58% urban schools. There is a marked improvement in the type of personnel manning the school libraries at this stage in that there are 1, 141 (3.66%) trained librarians and another 6,388 (20.52%) untrained librarians working either on part-time or full-time basis. This has considerably reduced the burden on teachers although their proportion is still high, i.e., 71.90%. The proportion of trained librarians is more among urban schools (8.1%) as against only 1.7% in rural schools.
Higher Secondary Schools As could be expected 9,101 (95.75%) of the 9,505 higher secondary schools have library facility in them The proportion of rural and urban schools is almost the same which is 95.35% and 96.07% respectively. About 35.5% librarians, both trained (14.62%) and untrained (20.88%), are working either part-time or full-time. Even at this stage in around 60% schools teachers are looking after the library. While there are nearly 22% trained librarians in urban schools there are only 4.9% trained librarians in rural schools.