Schools against linking attendance and grants, say it’ll encourage malpractice, ETEducation
Ahmedabad: The Gujarat education department’s new policy of linking grants for aided schools with students’ attendance has drawn strong opposition from school managements who believe the move could encourage malpractice.
Under the new policy, grants to aided schools will no longer be uniform but will depend on average student attendance. To receive a 100 per cent grant, aided schools in urban areas must maintain an average attendance of more than 80 per cent, while those in rural areas must have over 55 per cent attendance. If attendance falls below these thresholds, grants will be reduced in four graded stages.
School operators argue that the policy could push many aided schools, particularly smaller institutions, towards closure. They also warn that, unlike exam results, attendance figures are directly maintained by schools, creating the risk that some institutions may be tempted to inflate attendance records to avoid financial losses.
The state earlier implemented a result-based grant policy in 2013, linking grants to Class 10 and 12 board examination performance. That policy faced sustained opposition from aided school managements, which claimed they had limited control over results. After years of protests and representations, the education department scrapped the result-based policy in 2023 and restored 100 per cent grants. However, after barely two years, the department introduced the new attendance-based framework.
Managements contend that, while they could not manipulate exam outcomes, attendance records are vulnerable to misuse, especially in single-section aided schools, where maintaining high attendance is challenging. They argue that the policy may unintentionally promote false reporting rather than genuine improvements in student participation.
As opposition mounts, demands are growing for the govt to reconsider or withdraw the attendance-linked grant policy, citing the risk of closures and ethical concerns.
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