SRINAGAR: A middle school in Quilmuqam, District Bandipora, has witnessed an impressive surge in student enrollment, with numbers rising to more than double previous levels, demonstrating the trust and enthusiasm of the local community. Yet, despite the school’s appeal to parents, it faces an ironic challenge: reluctance from teachers to accept postings. Recently, eight teachers declined assignments to this school, reportedly leveraging their connections to avoid working there. The school’s appeal to families contrasts sharply with its struggle to attract and retain a stable teaching staff, raising concerns about staffing imbalances across the district.
Historically, middle schools in the region boasted large student populations, with enrolments often exceeding 300. The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), launched to ensure educational access in rural and underserved areas, introduced a school within a one-kilometre radius for most communities, resulting in smaller, localised schools. While this approach broadened employment opportunities and improved access, it diluted the traditional middle school environment, affecting both student development and teacher engagement. The SSA led to smaller, more homogenous classes, reducing the rich diversity that once characterised these schools and limited the educational experience for students and teachers alike.
Under the old model, teachers managed large, diverse classes and adapted to the varied backgrounds of their students. This challenge fostered strong bonds among students, who developed a deep sense of camaraderie and connection by spending long days together in a single institution. Teachers, often drawn from different regions, contributed diverse perspectives, allowing students to experience a range of teaching styles and cultural backgrounds, an experience that shaped students’ social and emotional growth.
However, the establishment of localised schools meant that students increasingly came from the same backgrounds, often from closely-knit neighbourhoods where families shared similar socio-economic profiles. Teachers accustomed to working with large, mixed groups were suddenly faced with much smaller, homogeneous classes, which lacked the diversity of experience that had previously enhanced teaching and learning.
The unintended consequences of the SSA initiative have led to frustrations within the teaching community. Some educators feel that the smaller classes and more repetitive daily routines lack the dynamic challenges they once found rewarding. The limited student diversity restricts teachers’ exposure to various learning styles, ultimately affecting their professional growth.
Teachers have even been observed expressing clear reluctance toward schools with higher enrolments. For instance, Asim (name changed), was reassigned to this middle school to teach a cohort of over 200 students. Unhappy with the transfer, he openly resisted, reportedly moved to tears as he voiced his disapproval. Eventually, he was retained at his previous school, where he only teaches two classes per day, a situation highlighting some teachers’ unwillingness to handle larger, more demanding classrooms. In a similar incident, another teacher, recently transferred from the high-enrolment Quilmuqam school, hosted a celebratory gathering to thank those who expedited his move to a less populated institution, signalling the degree to which teachers actively avoid schools with larger student bodies.
The situation underscores a critical gap in the educational system: schools that manage to attract students often find it challenging to maintain adequate staff levels, while smaller schools, with fewer enrolments, end up overstaffed. This imbalance affects not only the education quality at the thriving institutions but also the morale and growth of the teaching staff, who miss out on the professional development opportunities that come from working in diverse, high-capacity environments.
As District Bandipora grapples with these challenges, educators and policymakers may need to reconsider how to balance accessibility with the benefits of a more robust, diverse educational setting, potentially rethinking teacher deployment policies to ensure schools like Quilmuqam’s middle school can maintain both high enrolments and a motivated, committed teaching staff.
