Ghowoto GPS have around 40 students. In such poor building conditions, it is doubtful whether the students are encouraged to attend school and learn.
Dimapur, November 15 (MExN): Leave aside the absence of toilets, ceiling fans or even window panes, which are common trademarks of the abysmal infrastructure that signifies many of the government schools in Nagaland. Taking to a new low on the pathetic condition of Nagaland government school infrastructure, the Ghowoto Government Primary School (GPS) under Dhansiripar Sub-Division, Dimapur does not even have partition walls between the class rooms. With only half walls constructed between the class rooms, a teacher or student(s) in a class room can clearly see the other class rooms in full panorama. And yes, in a hot and humid place like Dimapur, the class rooms do not even have ceiling fans. There are no window panes either, just iron nets.
So how do teachers at Ghowoto GPS teach its students in such a condition? “We just teach. We try to concentrate on our teaching so do the students, despite the distractions,” is the response from a teacher working at the school.
Village Education Committee (VEC) chairman of Ghowoto GPS claimed it has been years since the school received any funds for maintenance of the school. “It’s difficult to maintain the school without receiving any funds coming from the school education department, so we have to make do with whatever infrastructure that is existing,” the VEC chairman maintained.
Ghowoto GPS have around 40 students. In such poor building conditions, it is doubtful whether the students are encouraged to attend school and learn. According to educationists and researchers, poor building conditions make students feel negatively about their school’s norms and expectations.
This negative perception of the school’s social climate contributes to high absenteeism. In turn, that contributes to low test scores and poor academic achievement, researchers said.
Similarly, the teachers also feel disillusioned to teach in such conditions. “We travel more than 30 kilometers from Dimapur to a school which have literally no infrastructure except for the building structure. It is very depressing,” the teacher confessed.
The Mid Day Meal (MDM) Scheme, a school meal programme of the Government of India designed to better the nutritional standing of school-age children nationwide, is also appalling at the school. The GPS receives only 3 bags of 50 kilo rice in 2-3 months and no other nourishments.
