MUMBAI/ BANGALORE: After chipping in for the country's educational system
for a decade, the Azim Premji Foundation (APF), run by the third richest Indian
on his own money, is all set for a generous initiative. The foundation plans
to start 1,300 schools across the country- two per district - which will be free,
impart education in the local language and be affiliated to the state board.
If the idea succeeds, it could shame India's dysfunctional public education
system - and perhaps inspire other wealthy tycoons to look beyond their personal
status-building.The APF schools, from preschool to class 12, will be on the lines
of government ones. The difference will be in quality. "Quality education is
fundamental to our becoming a developed nation. And the final crucible of
learning is the classroom," says Azim Premji.
Wipro's idea of starting 1,300 schools came after the Azim Premji Foundation
recently reviewed its work from 2001, the year in which it was set up. "We felt
the need to graduate from programme interventions to institution-building,"
says Dileep Ranjekar, APF's CEO. "One of our ideas was to set up a separate
educational board like the ICSE/ CBSE. But most of us...felt that change would
be better felt and seen by actually setting up schools."
Those associated with the planning of this Rs 9,000-crore project say that
the schools will focus on the overall development of their students, including
their health and nutrition. "The attempt is also to establish schools in corners
that are currently educationally under-served and not to compete with existing
schools, whether public or private," says Ranjekar, adding that seven schools
will start within a year-and-a-half in Karnataka, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and
Chhattisgarh. If things go as forecast, all the 1,300 schools should be up and
running by 2025.The aim behind the schools is two-pronged. "One is to build
social pressure for other schools to follow suit and provide quality education.
Two, we want to test ourselves, understand what it takes to deliver quality
teaching and learning. One cannot tell the world to improve unless one actually
leads by example," says Ranjekar.
A focal aim of the foundation is to get each school to evolve, over time,
as a development centre integrated with the community. Thus, the schools will
be staffed with teachers from the rural areas, but appointed after written tests
and an interview.
"Emphasis will be placed on their expertise in the subject, their understanding
of pedagogy and their social orientation. Parents of the children will be important
partners in the process of development," says Ranjekar.
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