Social Administration and Universalization of Education A Study on the Implementation of National Programmes with Reference to Kamrup Metro District Assam

Abstract

newline newline newline newline newline newline newline newline ABSTRACT newline newlineUniversalization of primary education is one of the most important elements in developing a nation. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Mid-Day Meal (MDM) programme are two schemes instituted by the government of India to promote elementary education. The purpose of this study was to understand the current administrative structure of SSA and MDM programs at different levels in the state of Assam and to determine the current status of SSA and MDM programmes in the Kamrup (Metropolitan) district of Assam in terms of infrastructural facilities extended to the schools, involvement of parents and School Management Committee in implementation of the schemes, and to also determine the problems faced by the schools. newline newlineIn order to fulfill the objectives of the study, the researcher adopted a descriptive as well as analytical research design. Both primary and secondary data were collected by the researcher. Secondary data was collected from government offices and agencies, journals, websites, etc., and primary data was collected from the teachers, headmasters and headmistresses, SMC members, and parents of children in the study area. Primary data was collected with the help of a structured questionnaire and interview schedule. A total of 132 schools were selected by the researcher and data from 505 teachers were obtained using the questionnaire using convenience sampling. The collected data was analyzed using simple frequency and percentages. newlineThe findings from the study indicated that school affairs are mostly managed by headmasters and headmistresses and majority of the schools have a school management committee and the committees hold meetings quarterly. The findings also indicated that most students are regular and absenteeism rates are low. Findings revealed that though schools have basic infrastructure, same are not well maintained and upgraded from time to time. In terms of the MDM programme, the study found no evidence of impact of MDM on enrolment rates and on the contrary found that it deviates the focus of teachers from teaching and learning. newline newlineBased on the evidence obtained through this study, the researcher recommends that teachers newline newlinefocus should only be on educating students and hence they should not be burdened with other non-academic activities of the government. Furthermore, mid-day meal was seen as an incentive to bring students to schools, however, according to the study it has been found that mid-day meal hardly serves the targeted purpose. In addition to this, it has created problems with storage of materials and added further burden on the teachers as some of them has to administer the mid- day meal programmes also. Hence, it is further recommended that mid-day meal programmes can be outsourced which will help the teachers to concentrate on their primary purpose of educating the students. Grants received by schools were found to be insufficient in managing the school activities. Hence, government needs to revisit the policy of granting funds to schools. School management committees may also look for their own revenue generation activities by organizing educational and training and developmental events and activities. newline newline newline newline