Schools to merge

The Union Ministry of Human Resource Development's directive to Goa's Department of Education to consolidate government primary schools which have an enrolment of 10 or less students opens a new chapter for all stake holders in the education sector calling for serious introspection on what ails these schools.
Government must look at why there is no significant increase in enrolments despite the support systems put up. In today's world where schooling is slowly drifting towards commercialisation with private schools throwing quick-fix solutions and offering holistic development of the child, survival of government primary schools is always going to be uncertain. The mindset of parents and government towards these needs to change and for that to happen the administration should take huge initiatives.
For a change of attitude and mindset of parents towards government primary schools, a lot needs to be done. There is a need for an urgent revamp. The infrastructure has to be upgraded and there need to be visiting faculty teachers instead of the single teacher classes, besides creation of an environment conducive to learning. There should be something which draws the students to these schools. Providing freebies like books, raincoats, uniforms, mid-day meals, financial assistance, etc will not change mindsets. Government should upgrade its primary schools and bring in competitiveness at all levels with private schools.
The quality of education too needs to be improved, a fact admitted by Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar recently. There should be an immediate change in curriculum making it more adaptable to the emerging world where newer trends are changing the dynamics of education. We need to go beyond book study. While the rest of the world has made significant strides in the education sector, we are still fighting over the choice of medium of instruction.
Teachers are certainly the friends, philosophers, guides and need to be skilled enough to adapt and take on the challenges of the changing world. A fifth standard student is now ready with solutions to what was being taught in Standard VIII a decade back. A 10-year-old is fluent with a tab or any other technological gadget. Where the debate rages on natural intelligence and Artificial Intelligence, teachers need to be fit enough to take on these challenges. Having said that, there are some government primary schools which have excelled; much of the credit goes to the teachers who stood out and made the difference.
Policy of giving permissions to schools should be looked into. Education is a noble profession and should not be commercialised. It appears that government primary schools have resigned to their fate as the government itself is allowing private schools to come up in their vicinity. It's an irony that government schools are many but low on students while on the other hand private schools are less but high on student count.
Amalgamation is not the solution but only an adjustment. When parents want holistic development of their child, government schools surely will not be their first choice for now, irrespective of the incentives they offer.