Curbs on franchisee schools welcomed

HYDERABAD: The Central Board of School Education (CBSE) has restricted schools from entering into monetary transactions with their franchisees, a move welcomed by parents across the city.

 

Several schools including various branches of Delhi Public Schools, DRS and Edify are parent institutions of many franchisee schools. The franchisee school pays a certain sum to the parent institution for using its name, logo and motto and the money is collected as part of the students' fees. The parent institution in turn, helps in setting up of the franchisee school but usually has no say in its internal management.

 

Following the CBSE's decision last week, parent institutions will now need to have an official record stating that they are not in any sort of transactional agreement with a franchisee school.

 

"We have been trying to protest against this monetary transaction between schools for a long time now as the burden of such an arrangement is borne by the parents, which is unacceptable. The move by the central board will help in making the education system more transparent," said Dr Shanth Kumar Goel, president of AP Parents' Association.

 

Many franchisee schools under the same parent institution have different fee structure."A school under the same brand name charges differently depending on its location. This sort of education is elitist and discriminatory," said Prasanth Kumar, parent of a four-year-old.

 

Despite an exorbitant fee structure, franchisee schools have a huge demand amongst parents who expect that these schools will provide the best education to their children. However, course curriculum between franchisee schools and parent institutions differs in most cases. "One look at the course curriculum at many of these schools will show the poor quality of education that is being imparted," Goel said.

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Curbs-on-franchisee-schools-welcomed/articleshow/22425695.cms

Karnataka HC: All children in private school must get free education

In an order having far-reaching consequences, the Karnataka High Court has held that all students aged between six and 14 in private schools are eligible for free education and not just those from poor families gaining admission under a 25 per cent quota fixed by the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act.

In an interim order on a batch of petitions on Tuesday, Justice Huluvadi G. Ramesh said Article 21A of the Constitution guaranteed free and compulsory education to all children in that age group.

The State government should reimburse the fees charged by private schools, he ruled. To arrive at a reasonable fee for reimbursement, , the Education Department should organise a seminar with the stakeholders on March 10.

“It is for the State and Central governments to work out the fee that has to be paid by children in the age group 6-14 and to see that proper arrangements are made to indemnify the institutions concerned on behalf of the children,” the judge said.

While some petitions claimed free education under Article 21A, others complained about the demand made by private schools for a fee in excess of the amount prescribed under the Karnataka Education Act. Private institutions had filed petitions questioning certain provisions in the Right to Education Act and the rules.

As for admissions made in 2012-13, the court directed the private institutions not to prevent students who are agitating over the fee structure from attending classes or tests. They should approach the State government seeking reimbursement of the fee to be paid by these students.

The court asked the Education Department to discuss at the seminar what would be the reasonable fees with representatives of private institutions, associations of teachers and parents, the Indian Council of Secondary Education and the Central Board of Secondary Education. The authorities should discuss the complaints of teachers that unaided and minority institutions were not paying pay scales fixed.

Based on the outcome of the deliberations, Justice Ramesh said, the Union and the State governments can take policy decisions on reimbursement of fee and earmark funds. The Court adjourned the hearing till April 16 and directed the two governments to submit a report based on the outcome of the seminar.

 

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/karnataka-hc-all-children-in-private-school-must-get-free-education/article4408757.ece

Public school turns out to be fake; owner arrested

Hyderabad: Will the real DPS please stand up? After Rajeev Gandhi International Airport police arrested the managing partner of a ‘fake’ school located at Shamshabad on Tuesday, questions are being raised about how many such fake schools are thriving in the city.


According to officials at the District Education Office, Rangareddy, the management of the school in question, named Delhi Public School (DPS), had not submitted the required documents before opening the school last year and the incident came to light now following complaints lodged by some parents.

Officials reported that around 253 such unrecognized schools existed across the city which have not submitted proper documents like lease deed, infrastructure particulars, traffic NOC etc. Moreover, officials added that in some cases, school managements even submit fake documents in a bid to cash in on the booming business of education here. “Last month, we booked cases against six city schools which had submitted fake traffic NOCs to us,” said A Subba Reddy, district education officer, Hyderabad.

Officials, however,said there were no immediate plans to crackdown on all the unrecognized schools. The only action being taken against them is barring its students to appear for the class X board examinations. These schools, however, manage the issue by enrolling their students as private candidates for the examination, but some face a bleak future. The arrested in the case of DPS Shamshabad has been identified as Syed Farooq Hussain of Bahadurpura. In June 2012, Farooq along with Subhash Chandra Bose and MA Nazeeb of Bahadurpura opened two schools under the name ‘Delhi Public School’ in Shamshabad and Attapur.

According to police, several parents enrolled their students at both these schools thinking that they are branches of popular Delhi Public School chain. In the school’s Shamshabad branch, currently 140 students are enrolled and at Attapur branch there are over 200 students, police said.

It was not immediately clear what would be the fate of these students, but officials said other than getting admitted in a recognized school there was no way out. For the last four months, the accused reportedly stopped paying salaries to teachers and they stopped taking classes. On February 8, the accused locked the school at Shamshabad and switched off their phones, they also stopped visiting the Attapur branch.

Suspecting foul play, one of the parents, Ashok God, lodged a complaint with the RGI Airport police against the school management on February 9. “After the complaint was lodged, we cross-checked about the school with the Mandal Education Officer (MEO) and then we realised that the school does not have recognition from any authorized body. The MEO told us that they have issued three notices to the school management for operating the institution without obtaining proper permission from the government,” RGI Airport SI M Kasi Viswanath said.

Based on the complaint, police booked a case under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust) and 420 (cheating) of the IPC against the three managing partners of the school. Police said the accused had collected hefty amounts from the parents at the time of admissions. Acting on a specific alert, police arrested one of the accused, Syed from his house in Bahadurpura on Tuesday. During the interrogation, Syed told police that it was his associate Bose’s idea to use the popular brand name Delhi Public School to attract parents. He was produced before the court and remanded in judicial custody. A man hunt has
been launched to nab the other accused.

Times of India | Hyderabad | 13th February, 2013 | Page2

School cabs to go yellow with green stripe

BANGALORE: Contract carriage vehicles ferrying children to schools should be painted yellow with a horizontal 150-mm stripe in green colour in the middle all round them. The vehicles should prominently display the words "school cab" on all four sides.

These are some of the conditions laid out by the commissioner for transport and road safety for operating contract carriage vehicles that ferry schoolchildren. The directive cites a Supreme Court order on safety of schoolchildren and a state government notification dated January 18, 2013.

Vehicles plying schoolchildren should have a contract carriage permit issued under Section 74 of the Motor Vehicles Act 1988, the commissioner said.

Seating capacity must not exceed 13, including driver. The authority said that a speed governor with maximum speed of 40 kmph should be fitted to the vehicle. Also, the vehicle should not be over 15 years old from the date of initial registration. While the driver must have a valid licence for a period of at least four years, there should be sufficient space for school bags inside the vehicles.

The closed body type and hard top vehicles should have a complete register of children in the cab, including their name, class, residential address, contact phone/ mobile number, blood group, route plan etc.

The commissioner has asked all heads of schools/ school committees and private vehicles operators providing transport facility to schoolchildren to strictly adhere to the conditions.

OTHER RIDERS

* 'School cab' must be written on all sides of vehicle

* Authorized LPG kits to be certified. No seats over LPG tank

* No tinted windows; doors must have reliable locks

* Display name, address/phone number of permit holder on rear of cab

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/School-cabs-to-go-yellow-with-green-stripe/articleshow/18175233.cms

Parents cry foul as Hyderabad schools hike fees

HYDERABAD: The admission season is just beginning and several schools in the city have already announced up to15% hike in their fee structure. While about a dozen top schools which are currently charging fee between Rs 45,000 to Rs 1.5 lakh have hiked the tuition charges by 5 to 15%, parents associations in the city are demanding the state government to control unjustified hike in fee.

Some of the schools which have increased the fee this year are those which had implemented a fee hike last year too. Hyderabad Schools Parents' Association (HSPA) will petition the state government if unjustified fee hikes are not monitored, HSPA representative said. Parents said that the schools which have hiked the fee include Delhi Public School and Oxford. More schools could announce their hikes in the next month, parents predicted.

The parents associations in the city pointed out that the state government had promised them in 2011 that fee hike in schools will be monitored to prevent any additional financial burden on them. The government had decided to come up with a new act to prevent private schools from increasing fees every academic year.

When asked about the laxity in implementing the act, K Parthasarathi, minister for secondary education said that following the example of Tamil Nadu, the state government will enact the act before the commencement of the next academic year. The Act will also lay out rules that will have to be followed by the secondary education department while granting recognition to private schools.

The state's initiative for the new Act is part of the mandate of the Right to Education (RTE) Act that stipulates new legislation to control private schools. Also, a high court order issued in 2010 had directed the department to come up with fresh rules of fee regulation.

"The court had directed the school education department to come out with new rules as the old GO (Ms No 91) was issued in a hurry and had several flaws. If the government is planning to come out with new regulations before the commencement of the next academic year, many parents will be relieved," said Kamal Malliramani, a member HSPA.

According to HSPA records, several city schools have already hiked their fee structure by 10% to 15% for the coming academic year. "If a new legislation is put in place, there will be some amount of fear among private schools and unjustified fee-hike might stop," said Malliramani.

HSPA said the state government should force the schools to make their fee structure a public document like in Tamil Nadu. Meanwhile, private school managements said that they would welcome the move only if fee regulation is introduced across the board. "No schools including international and corporate schools should be exempted from regulation," said Srinivas Reddy, convener, Recognised Schools' Managements' Association.

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Parents-cry-foul-as-Hyderabad-schools-hike-fees/articleshow/18011973.cms

Choosing a school for your child

Parents are busy drawing up a list of the perfect school for their children.After all,a school moulds a childs overall development.Vidyalaxmi writes


It is that time of the year when parents are busy deciding on the school they would like to have their child studying in.The next academic year is still 6-7 months away,but parents have started drawing up their choice of schools.

Just like a college admission or admission to an MBA course,the little ones and their parents go through the process of filling up application forms,attending interviews and waiting for the final admission list.This is seen by many parents as the important first step for a good education for their child.

I have been studying the curriculum and the teaching methods of various schools in my suburb for eight months now, says Sandeep Bachhe,a technical analyst.

I identified 7-8 schools based on proximity,feedback and the curriculum.Then I ensured I met parents whose children were already studying in these schools,to get a first-hand feedback.Based on the parents'feedback and our expectations,I shortened the list to three schools and picked one from them, says Sandeep.

The fact is,parents want their kids to get the best education possible.Unfortunately,in their eagerness to provide the best education often they consider only the affordability factor before deciding on the school or curriculum.

Sure,it is an important parameter,but there are certain other factors one should look at to make the right choice.

Choice of Curriculum
Gone are the days when a parent had just schools of state board or the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to choose from.Today,there is a wide range of options,including schools following the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) and The International Baccalaureate (IB)/ International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) curricula.

You may be already clear about your choice of curriculum,but there are a few points you should consider before making your choice.If the parent /parents have a transferable job and the child has to change schools frequently,they should ideally opt for an ICSE or CBSE school.

Parents in a government job that involves transfer to tier-II towns should ideally opt for a CBSE school.If the transfer is restricted to metros or urban areas,parents can opt for ICSE or a CBSE School."The logic is that ICSE schools are still a rare concept in smaller towns of the country,"says KSR Iyer,a counsellor.

"I have a job with prospects of overseas postings.For some reason,if I migrate to some other country,I don't want my child's education to suffer.Hence I have opted for IGSCE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) board,"says Sandeep.

Schools Credentials
There are a number of international schools mushrooming in every corner of cities.If the school or the management of the school has a pedigree and expertise in the field of education,it definitely adds to the school's credentials.But that alone is not enough.

"I was keen on sending my child to a school following the IGSCE curriculum.But,after doing some homework,I realised only a few IGSCE/IB schools in India have the right global recognition,"says Meenakshi Rajan,a citybased software engineer."I learnt that the recognised international schools in every country are listed on the IB website (formerly known as International Baccalaureate Organisation (IBO))."

Student-Centric Approach
Today,many schools have recognised that all children are not equally prepared for schooling,especially in the initial years of education.Students may show some learning disorders such as dyslexia,or have stronger visual memory,etc.

Hence,many schools have learning resource centres to give extra coaching to such children to bring them at a par with other students in the class.

"As parents,we think our child will be the best student of the school.But,we may be in for a surprise when our child may actually struggle with the curriculum.Hence,it is better to opt for schools having such resource centres that can mould students,"says a teacher with a popular school in the city.

It is also important for a school to have a healthy teacher-to-child ratio,especially in the lower classes.

"Thanks to the school,I learnt that my daughter is interested in reading and music.We have frequent teacher-parent meetings,which help us understand our child's evolving interests.Now,I can think of formal training in music for my child or,at least,I have an idea what would be her choice of activity in the spare time,"says Abhilasha Joshi,a mother who also runs a beauty salon business.

Times of India | 22nd November 2012 | Education Times

Madhya Pradesh government working on school fee regulation Act

INDORE: Parents' woes concerning arbitrary hike in school fee may soon see a respite.

Taking cue from states including Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh government is working on enacting an Act that would regulate fees in private schools in the state. The school education department is working on it and is in consultation with all concerned departments and people so as to give a final shape to it and later passing the bill in the state assembly. If the act comes into action it would restrict private schools from increasing fees every academic year in an uneven manner.

Speaking to ToI, principal secretary, school education department, Sanjay Kumar Singh said, "Indeed we are working on introducing a fee regulation act to restrict arbitrary fee hike in all private schools. We are in consultation with those concerned to come to a consensus." When asked about the possible dates of introducing the bill in state assembly, he said, "Legislative process takes its time. However, we are working to introduce it as soon as possible."

Recently, Rajasthan state assembly has given approval to Rajasthan schools' regulation of collection of fee bill, which lays out punishment of three years imprisonment and Rs 50,000 fine for not following the rules and hiking fees in arbitrary manner. Tamil Nadu too has constituted a committee which will decide particular amount of fees to be charged by any private school.

Meanwhile, parents have welcomed the government's proposal to check fee hike. "If the government is planning to come out with new regulations before the commencement of the next academic year, many parents will be relieved," said Nilesh Churchill, a parent. According to parents, several city schools have already hiked their fee structure by 10 per cent to 50 per cent in the academic year. "If a new legislation is put in place, there will be some amount of fear among private schools and unjustified fee-hike might stop," said Churchill.

Meanwhile, private school managements said that implementing fee regulation is a difficult task. "We have been called for a meeting related to the act but there are several points in the documents that will make it difficult to implement the Act in all schools. If government comes with concrete parameters only then can it come into effect. Moreover, the union ministry has proposed to bring schools under 15% income tax slab. Once, schools come under the slab, then it will be recognized as a company and regulating fees cannot be forced," said a school principal wishing anonymity.

 

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-11-01/indore/34856532_1_school-fee-collection-of-fee-bill-fee-hike

Panel wants 64 schools to refund excess fee

New Delhi, Sep 1 (IANS) Sixty-four private city schools have illegally collected higher fee from students since September 2008, a committee has informed the Delhi High Court while recommending a refund of the money with 9 percent per annum interest.


The 600-page interim report of Justice Anil Dev Singh Committee, which randomly examined the accounts of 200 schools, was opened by a special bench of Acting Chief Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Siddharth Mridul Friday.

The committee was constituted about a year ago to submit a report on the determination of fees in the unaided schools in Delhi.

Its first interim report was based on an examination of 200 unaided private schools out of a total 1,172 institutions.

In the case of 13 schools, the committee found that either no records were maintained or the accounts were fudged. It recommended strict action against these schools.

"The committee recommends that the schools be directed to refund the increased monthly fee from September 2008 till the date of actual refund along with the interest at the rate of 9 percent per annum," the report said.

It also raised questions on the working of the department of education as it did not act in accordance with the law in inspecting the schools.

"The regulatory mechanism envisaged by the law has been thrown to the winds by the directorate of education. Schools are enjoying total and unbridled freedom in acting in the manner they like," the report said.

"Right from the stage of granting recognition, the lack of supervisory control of the directorate is writ large. Hardly any inspections are done and even if they are, they are conducted in a most perfunctory manner," the report said.

The bench July 20 directed the committee to submit a report on the fee hike in unaided private schools in Delhi. After the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission, the schools increased the fees citing additional financial burden due to increased salaries of teachers.

The court gave directions for setting up a committee to audit the accounts of each of the schools to ascertain if the fee hike by them was required.

The committee also said that there were 143 schools which increased the fee without implementing the Sixth Pay Commission. Many of the schools in the city were operating without even a bank account and years after years they were granted recognition, it said.

Several of the schools have not been maintaining proper accounts and were not getting their accounts audited as required by the law, and were also not filing annual returns, the report said. "Some of the schools have been fabricating their accounts and getting various types of certificates from chartered accountants which do not qualify as audit reports," said the report.

Advocate Ashok Agarwal, appearing for a group of parents, earlier said that if the report was submitted "it would be a great relief to the exploited parents, as they would be entitled to refund of the excess fee recovered from them by schools".

The court would next hear the matter Sep 14.

http://www.newstrackindia.com/newsdetails/2012/09/01/287--Panel-wants-64-schools-to-refund-excess-fee-.html

Government has no control over schools

A Delhi high court-appointed committee has said that the extent of irregularities indulged in by private schools in the capital to bolster their case for a fee hike in 2009, indicated that the government had no control over their functioning. The panel, which inspected accounts of 200 schools to verify the validity of up to 25 per cent fee hike imposed by them, submitted before the Delhi high court that it was high time the government took action against errant schools.

"Regulatory mechanism envisaged by the law has been thrown to the winds by the directorate of education. Schools are enjoying total and unbridled freedom and are acting in the manner they like," said the three-member committee headed by former Rajasthan high court chief justice Anil Dev Singh.

"Right from the stage of granting recognition, the lack of supervisory control of the directorate of education is writ large. Hardly any inspection is done," it said. Apart from the 64 schools indicted by the panel for unjustifiably hiking fees, the panel also found that at least 50 other schools had fudged account statements and concealed receipt books and made it difficult to ascertain the extent by which they hiked the fee.

"In case violators are not dealt with adequately by the education department, their disdain for the rules would keep on pinching the pockets of the parents," said the panel, recommending punitive action against many such schools.

"The panel's conclusions are sensational. It is a warning bell. Hope it brings a change in the way schools function," said Ashok Agarwal, lawyer for parents in the PIL which triggered formation of a panel to verify the validity of fee hike.

 

http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/Government-has-no-control-over-schools/Article1-923162.aspx

Nursery rush begins again

NEW DELHI: Over a dozen schools in NCR have started registration - some even admissions - for the nursery class of 2013-14. Some others will initiate the process by August-end or early September.

Gurgaon-based Vijaylakshmi has been calling schools everyday. "I've also been coaching my son," she says. She is interested in having her son admitted into one of three schools and is referring to admissionsnursery.com - started by another beleaguered parent - for help.

She is interested in DPS Sushant Lok, which had sold forms at an admissions fair but isn't anymore. "They say they'll start selling after August 21." Parents who collected DPS Sushant Lok forms were told that appointment details for their round of interactions will be intimated in the first week of September. Registration is open at other schools, too, including Lotus Valley International School (Gurgaon), Shiv Nadar Schools (Gurgaon, Noida) and GD Goenka Public School (Indirapuram).

Ardee School started selling forms on August 16 and the last date for submission is September 15. "DPS Vasundhara opened last week and admissions there will remain open for another two weeks. We are not covered by the Directorate of Education guidelines. We're lucky that way," says Rita Kapur, executive director, DPS Ghaziabad Society.

Another Gurgaon parents have already managed to get her son placed in Ryan International. "I bought the form at the fair and they gave me a date and time for the interaction there itself. My child got selected," she says sounding relieved.

Most of Sarbani Ojha's "target schools" - Scottish High School, Heritage and Sun City School - will open only next week. "I also want Shri Ram School but for that I'll have to wait till January. I feel uneasy about waiting," she says.

"In Delhi, the bigger, better established schools will wait till the guidelines from the Directorate of Education are declared. Most open after November," says Sumit Vohra who has started admissionsnursery.com.

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Nursery-rush-begins-again/articleshow/15524276.cms

DEO raids Private schools in Vijayawada for higher fee's

When do we see AP government acting against greedy school managements ?

While the issue of "year on year" fee hikes is on, there has been a good response from governments in TN, Maharastra & few other states. Unfortunately & inspite of HC order in favour of parents, AP Government is sitting still on the request of lakhs of parents in the state.

For your information, please click below link for details in  TN

http://www.tn.gov.in/departments/sedu/feedetermination_SRS/default.html

Sakshi | 9th July, 2012 | Hyderabad

Private schools to hold protest rally on July 7

HYDERABAD: Demanding that educational institutions be brought under the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA), hundreds of schools have decided to hold a rally in the city on July 7.

The protest is being organised by Andhra Pradesh Recognised Schools Managements Association which has about 17,000 schools across the state under its wing. Protesting school managements said as many as 40 working days were lost due to bandh calls in the last academic year of 2011-12.

Even as the schools reopened on June 12 this year, two holidays were announced owing to bandh calls given by various student unions. School managements said they were forced to work even on Sundays to make up for the lost working days in the last academic year to complete the portions.

"Class X students who appear for the board examinations are put to test during the bandh days. They come under a lot of pressure," said S Sreenivas Reddy, president of the association. Only students belonging to class VIII and IX will participate in the rally, officials of the organization said.

The rally, which will start at 10am on July 7, will conclude at Indira Park.

"Political parties and student unions should exempt schools from bandhs as children at that age can hardly understand politics. They only stand to lose in the long run," said Reddy.

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Private-schools-to-hold-protest-rally-on-July-7/articleshow/14681196.cms

Let school panels ensure bus safety

Despite recent measures, school bus safety is still a matter of grave concern for parents. With the start of the new academic year, they admit that they still do not feel secure letting their children commute by these buses.

Meanwhile, experts say the responsibility for school bus safety should be given to the school bus committees appointed within the schools.

Shatabdi Bannerjee from Mira Road, whose daughter takes the bus to school every day, said, “Every time I put my child in the school bus, my heart skips a beat thinking about whether she will return safe and sound at the end of the day. But there is no other choice as my husband and I are working professionals who take trains to work.”

Parents who decided to start carpooling their children to school after several school bus mishaps, are now at their wits’ end. Santa Cruz resident and parent Asmita Mogre said, “Worried about school bus safety, four parents in our locality began a carpool. But that has stopped after the petrol price hike. Our children are back to taking the school bus.”

The latest government resolution has stated that schools that do not own their buses but hire buses on contract will no longer be held responsible in case of a mishap. With nearly 80% of schools employing contract buses, this GR has invoked the wrath of parents as they feel that school authorities will wash their hands of their children’s safety and not ensure that mandated norms are in place in the buses.

Experts have recommended that school bus committees formed by schools should be given responsibility to ensure school bus safety. Jayant Jain, president of Forum For Fairness In Education, said, “School bus contractors are appointed by school authorities.

Then why can’t they be held responsible? If schools are not held accountable, they will not look into the appointment of the contractor seriously.

“School bus committees have to be appointed as per government norms and should include all stakeholders like the principal, RTO officer, a parent and the bus operator as well. This committee should be given joint responsibility for child safety,’’ he said.

http://www.dnaindia.com/academy/report_let-school-panels-ensure-bus-safety_1708042

State can't violate Supreme Court directive on RTE

HYDERABAD: Protecting private schools from implementing the Right to Education act is a state government order, according to which seats in neighbourhood government and aided schools should be filled before private schools are approached for admission under RTE. The order has been a key reason for private schools to steer clear of earmarking 25 per cent seats under the RTE Act. But Supreme Court advocate Ashok Agarwal, who has been spearheading the RTE implementation, says that the GO is in violation of the Act.

In the city on Wednesday, Ashok Agarwal told TOI that he had been travelling to various districts across Andhra Pradesh to meet lawyers and create awareness about the act so that they can take up cases of violation. "Section 12 of the RTE Act makes it very clear that it is a child's right to get admission in a private school and such a government order (issued by the state government) is in contradiction of this provision. The state while framing the rules cannot violate the act, they don't have power. This amounts to repealing section 12," Agarwal said.

He said another problem in AP is in the rules framed by the government on RTE's implementation. "They have applied reservations in this 25 %. This is reservation within reservation which is not permissible," he said.

Agarwal, who has been actively involved with MV Foundation, has toured districts including Kurnool, Khammam and Nalgonda over the last few days speaking to lawyers. "We are telling our lawyer friends about RTE provisions and asking them to adopt one school and then find out violation of the act. People can go to taluka and even district court... they needn't move the high court. We are getting a good response," he said.

 

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/State-cant-violate-Supreme-Court-directive-on-RTE/articleshow/14438661.cms

Rising cost of education stifles parents

Many private schools stipulate that students buy textbooks, stationery from them

Even while struggling to survive the petrol price hike, parents across the city are now faced with the prospect of shelling out more money as the educational institutions are about to open.

With many private school managements stipulating that the students must buy the textbooks and stationery from them only, there is additional financial burden on the parents, as school managements are charging more than the open market prices.

“A full books and stationery set, put out as a package for each student by the school management, costs no less that Rs.3,000 a year even for primary school students. And that for high school students goes up to Rs.5,000,” says Lavanya, whose daughter studies at the Delhi Public School.

Expensive stuff

Even as some schools have made it optional for parents to buy books from the school or from outside, several parents said that schools take advantage of those parents who buy it from the school to save on their time.

“While uniforms too need to be purchased only from the school, each pair costs nearly Rs.1,000. A pair of socks, if purchased from the school, is priced at an unreasonable Rs. 150. Come June and almost an entire month's pay cheque goes on expenses to be borne for a new academic year,” rued another parent.

That apart, several corporate schools are now forcing parents of high school children to even purchase customised tablet devices like the ‘edutor' which costs Rs. 750.

No choice

The device enables electronic storage of lessons to be taught in an academic year. Many parents, however, said that they find no merit in introducing such technology among students when they have to buy and carry books to school, nonetheless.

“Also, this year we were asked to pay an additional Rs.1,000 towards ‘extra curricular activities' so that children are allowed to play indoor games like carom, chess, etc.

Managements are openly looting parents who do not have another choice but to abide,” said a parent.

Parents in dark

Another major concern of parents pertains to the ‘parent committees' which ought to be set up in all schools, as per the AP Education Act. “While many schools have not even constituted the committee, those who have do not ever consult parents before taking any major decisions, including fee hikes, as mandated,” said AP Parents Associations Coordination Committee convenor S. Govindarajulu.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Hyderabad/article3475748.ece

Tab trend fuels fee hike fears in city

HYDERABAD: High-end city schools have it all. Air-conditioned smart classrooms with touch screen blackboards, ergonomic furniture and pasta for lunch. And they just can't stop adding to the list of classroom must-haves - the latest step makes it mandatory for students between class VIII to X to become Tab-friendly.

Well, if the Akash Tablet can be introduced in government schools, why not private schools embrace the same novelty, it is asked. But with a price tag of Rs 8,000, parents aren't looking forward to slipping the gadget into their child's bag just yet. School managements maintain that the gadget will prove to be an effective learning tool that digitizes homework and classroom lessons. Some schools have even asked their students to get tabs even before the start of this summer vacation. As for the rest, they say that tablets will be introduced at the beginning of the coming academic year in June.

Schools such as Meridian in Banjara Hills and Silver Oaks in Bachupally have already announced the move to take on tabs as classroom aids. Even Oakridge International School (Bachupally), Jubilee Hills Public School and Delhi Public School (Diamond Point) too are seriously considering introducing the gadget in their classrooms. While at Meridian, students from classes VIII to X will be using the device, Silver Oaks has introduced it in class IX.

While tablets manufactured by a city-based technological solutions company are priced at Rs 8,000, much lower than that of the Ipad, whose induction in a Mumbai school recently kicked up a storm, parents feel that this gadget is an extra expenditure which will not serve any purpose.

For one, they say that the introduction of tabs will not reduce the weight of the schoolbag as children will have to carry their notebooks and textbooks to school anyway. Most publishers are yet to come out with e-book versions of their textbooks so the tabs will carry only related learning materials like concept maps, animated diagrams and homework applications. Applications which might divert the attention of children, like games and other entertainment tools, will not be available in these tablets.

Parents are predictably worried about the expenditure. "Schools hiked fees by 25% a couple of years back to put together smart classrooms providing the best teaching and learning solutions. Now, they are forcing us to buy tabs all in the name of providing quality education. They seem to have a myopic vision of what education is," said Ramnik Kaur, a parent.

However, Hyderabad Schools' Parents' Association (HSPA) has condemned the move. "Tabs and other gadgets are not good for children as constant use can affect their neck and spine," said HSPA's Kamal Malliramani.

Parents pointed out that there was no replacement clause in the agreements signed with the schools and, hence, any damage to tablet would have to be repaired at their own expense. "The tab could very well get damaged or malfunction but it is not clear whether it will be replaced," a parent said, fearing the extra expenditure that would entail. Schools, however, said that advances in the digital field would have to sooner or later be adopted in classrooms. "The government is thinking of introducing Akash Tablets in government schools to facilitate learning. The device will help students learn even while they are on the move.

"Moreover, in the years to come, more and more publishers are expected to embrace the e-book format so, eventually, the weight of schoolbags will also lessen," said Usha Reddy, principal, Meridian School. She added that about three-fourths of the students in question had already purchased the tab with parents finding the initiative interesting enough to back it.

Seetha Murty, principal, Silver Oaks, said: "Parents have not complained about the move (to introduce tabs) as they think that it is a good educational tool." The management of Oakridge International School revealed that they have already organised a demonstration of the tab and on April 28 would take a call on whether to introduce the device or not.

Jubilee Hills Public School has got its academic committee to do a feasibility study and intends to introduce the gadget once the cost-factor is negotiated. "The tabs will change everything right from the weight of the schoolbag to the method of learning. We will introduce it somewhere down the line," said Shailaja Gopinath, principal, DPS, Diamond Point.

Some schools, like Geetanjali School, Glendale Academy and Pallavi Model School, though have decided to reject such a proposal. "Two years back we had introduced the tab but it was not made compulsory. Just 10% of the students had opted for it and the move did not excite too many parents," said an official from Pallavi Model School.
 
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Tab-trend-fuels-fee-hike-fears-in-city/articleshow/12723407.cms

A for admission fee

The spectre of donation is haunting parents once again. It is that time of the year when parents run around in search of a school that can provide quality education without charging an astronomical sum as ‘admission’ fee. The fleecing is there in almost all schools, only the amount varies in proportion to their individual clout.

Pelli chesi choodu, illu katti choodu is a Telugu saying (meaning, perform a marriage or build a house to know onerous responsibility) that every parent must have heard at least once in their lifetime. If we go by the present situation in regard to school admissions, one may well add - kotha admission chesi choodu to the saying.

Getting admission in a good school that has an affordable fee structure is like chasing a mirage. Try as much as you want, still you cannot escape shelling out huge sums as admission fee. This amount is non-refundable and it urrently ranges from `15,000 – `1,00,000.

The whole process takes at least a couple of months. Parents need to get the prospectus from at least five or six schools and what makes it even more difficult is that there are no standard regulations.

The admission procedure, rules, entrance exams, interviews and the type of questions differ from one school to another. Finally, the interactive session with the managements of schools is something that can be a harrowing experience.

Alok, a parent, asks, “Why should I answer questions? I know my responsibilities. Questions on family background are something I detest. I had to attend interviews and take my kid to different schools on different dates. I lost 10 working days.”

Apart from spending a huge sum at the time of new admission, the annual school fee, transport and others can cost between `25,000-60,000 annually in most schools. When it comes to international schools that offer International Baccalaureate (IB) and International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) syllabus, then the annual fee can range anywhere between Rs 2,00,000 and Rs 4,00,000, depending on the school and its reputation.

Ramesh Patnaik, organising secretary of the Andhra Pradesh Save Education Committee (APSEC), says, “According to the 1/1994 AP Government Act, 50 percent of the fee collected has to be used for teachers’ emoluments, 15 per cent for teachers’ retirement benefits, another 15 per cent for day-to-day expenditure, 15 per cent for school’s development and five per cent is at the discretion of the management.

“This year, schools have increased their fee from 18 to 100 per cent. Last year an international school, located at Kondapur, was charging `74,000. This year it has increased the amount to Rs 1,32,000. Some school managements went to the Andhra Pradesh High Court and obtained a stay on the GO 91.

As the government cannot intervene at the present juncture, the school managements are doing as they wish,” says Ravi Kumar, general secretary of the Hyderabad Schools Parents Association (HSPA).

B Parvesh, president of the Hyderabad Public School Ramanthapur Parents Association, says, “As per the 96-2006 GO-MS – school managements are allowed to collect Rs 1,500 as admission fee. HPS Ramanthapur and HPS Begumpet collect Rs 25,000 as admission fee and another Rs 5,000 as caution deposit.

The society is diverting the money to its corpus and the accrued yearly interest amounts to Rs 80 lakh per year.” He adds, “There is no explanation as to how the money is used. The society is sitting on Rs 12 crore.”

The money collected from admission fee is not shown as revenue. As per the Government Act 1994/1, 65 per cent of the fund is to be used for teachers’ salaries and welfare. The parents association has been fighting for transparency in the society’s work.

M Somi Reddy, DEO of Hyderabad, says, “As the GO has been challenged, school managements are going about their work without any thought. The department is keeping an eye on school managements.”

 

http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=1&ContentId=43872

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