JAMMU, Apr 20: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, chaired a high level meeting to review the status of school education across the Union Territory, with a special focus on improving learning outcomes and implementation of different schemes aiming upgradation of the education system across J&K.
The meeting besides ACS, School Education Department was attended by MD, Samagra Shiksha; Director, School Education, Kashmir/Jammu; Special Secretary, SED, Secretary, JKBOSE; Director, SCERT along with other officers of the department.
The Chief Secretary emphasized the need for integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) into the learning ecosystem. He directed the School Education Department to develop an AI-based learning module that would offer customized lessons to students based on their individual assessments, thereby addressing their weak areas more effectively.
He suggested seeking technical assistance from the Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG-N) for this initiative.
While taking stock of enrolment figures at the primary and middle school levels across the Government and private institutions, Dulloo expressed concern over the stagnation in student enrolment in Government schools.
He noted that despite significant higher investments and nearly three times more Government primary schools compared to private ones, enrolment figures remain nearly the same.
He called for a comprehensive study to understand this trend and come up with actionable recommendations to reverse it.
To enhance governance and real-time monitoring, the Chief Secretary directed the department to create a comprehensive dashboard providing a bird’s eye view of each school.
This digital platform should include data on class-wise student enrolment, availability of teachers, results from periodic assessments, and infrastructure status, enabling data-driven decision-making related to imparting of quality education in these schools.
Reviewing the basic amenities in schools, the Chief Secretary took note of the status on availability of essential utilities such as water supply, electricity, washrooms and other infrastructural facilities.
He stressed that no school should be left without these fundamental amenities, as their absence hampers the delivery of quality education. He advised the department to explore mechanisms for deploying vocational and subject-specific teachers in schools with critical requirements.
He recommended utilizing provisions under the Samagra Shiksha scheme or revisiting the freezing period associated with the recruitment of general line teachers to ensure adequate staffing.
On the occasion, ACS, SED, Shantmanu, detailed out a comprehensive progress report on implementation of education related schemes in the UT.
He highlighted significant strides made across various dimensions of the education sector. The department reaffirmed its commitment towards achieving 100% saturation of ICT Labs and Smart Classrooms in all higher secondary schools by FY 2025-26.
Besides, introduction of vocational education in 550 more schools and establishment of additional innovative labs and digital infrastructure are also in pipeline, as was apprised in the meeting.
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