The Himachal Pradesh government has initiated the ‘My School-My Pride’ campaign, a drive aimed at fostering community engagement in education, as per the official announcement.
The campaign encourages individuals and organisations to actively participate by adopting a school of their choice. Participants are urged to provide valuable contributions such as career counseling, guidance, hosting special classes for remedial teaching, yoga training and making financial donations to support the schools, as outlined by officials on Sunday.
This initiative operates under the broader ‘Apna Vidyalay’ programme, which seeks to instigate a ‘Giving back to society’ movement. The programme invites retired teachers, professionals, housewives or any willing member of the community to step forward and join the academic support team. These volunteers are encouraged to impart their knowledge and skills to students without seeking any payment or honorarium, according to a government spokesperson’s statement.
The overarching goal of the ‘Apna Vidyalaya’: The Himachal School Adoption Programme (HSAP) is to establish a collaborative partnership between public representatives, administrative leaders and skilled professionals. This collective effort aims to contribute significantly to the enhancement of government schools, as highlighted by the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led state government.
Within the framework of the ‘My School-My Pride’ campaign, those who choose to adopt a school, referred to as ‘adopters,’ will offer support in instances of teacher shortages or when teachers are on leave. A monitoring system will be put in place to oversee these efforts. Additionally, dignitaries, including MPs, MLAs, and officers, will be urged to adopt at least one government school of their choice across the state, assuming the role of School Patrons. Their responsibility will include suggesting ways for improvement. Similarly, all officers in the education department are expected to adopt one school each and act as mentors, according to the government’s statement.
To enhance transparency, accountability and facilitate real-time monitoring, the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) will develop a dedicated portal for the ‘Apna Vidyalaya’ programme, accessible to the public. This platform will enable online measurement and corrective actions.
It’s worth noting that during its tenure, the BJP government had introduced the ‘Akhand Shiksha Jyoti – mere school se nikle moti’ scheme. This initiative involved successful alumni from government schools returning to inspire students and contribute to their alma maters in various ways.
With inputs from PTI.