The Success Story of Girls’ Residential Schools ✒ Salil Saroj e.mail id: [email protected] Presence of a guiding framework that ensures basic rights of students and teachers should not be seen as an effort to homogenise, as widely unequal norms and practices cannot be promoted in the name of diversity. For instance, the presence of universal right to food does not mean everyone has to eat the same food; it ensures that everyone gets adequate food and desired nutrition. Similarly, it is possible to build accountability norms for residential schools such that it ensures a certain degree of equality but also allows the teachers/managers at the school level an agency to act and facilitates independent action. Although some level of cross learning has taken place but in general, the level of sharing and cross learning is low. The teachers and administrators of different kinds of residential schools rarely get together to discuss, share and learn from each other. The presence of formal mechanisms for facilitating such exercises periodically could help all concerned. Cooperation and exchange of experiences, concerns and solutions can also help in enhancing the influence of these schools operational under various schemes. Schools located close to each other can allow the use of certain facilities to make the use more efficient. A coherent public policy would expect the same rationale to be extended to similar schemes: if residential schooling is viewed as a good policy option to reach girls from deprived communities, the same should be reflected in all State funded schemes. Hence, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas should have higher reservation for girls and within that, for SC, ST and Muslim girls. There is a need to go beyond ensuring participation of these groups, as more privileged among those tend to gain and retain access. Cross learning can be facilitated across many other levels, sharing of international experiences through appropriate platforms is one such means. The choice of exchange could be preceded with a detailed inquiry and analysis of the programme to determine the relevance. Indian schemes can also benefit by knowing more about Gender Responsive Management practices in the African countries. Kenya’s human rights-based approach to promote inclusive and persuasive gender responsive discourse in girls’ education could also be a good model for replication. Indian experience also has a lot to offer, as visible from the section on good practices. The future and success of these schools vastly depend on the retention capacity of the management so that the students do not leave their education in mid way for the want of other social obligations and restrictions. The girls especially will have to be provided neat and cleans toilet and drinking water facilities, safe and secured environment to participate well in all the extra-curricular activities as enshrined in the constitution of these schools and an integrated approach which may join teachers, parents and students in a cordial relationship where no body should shy to open up with any one and the problems can be solved at the basic level only. The Government will have to bring attractive policies more like mid- day meals and free uniforms, books, bicycles, laptops so that they may keep the students motivated to achieve better results at every level with the sense of pride and protection of their identity. A TO Z INDIA ● SEPTEMBER 2021 ● PAGE 8