The Ao Kaketshir Mungdang (Ao Students’ Conference) has highlighted the severe shortage of teachers and lack of proper educational facilities in government schools in the Tzurangkong range under the jurisdiction of the Sub-Divisional Education Officer (SDEO), Mangkolemba.

In a press release, AKM informed that the second phase of inspection and visitation of government schools was conducted from 9th to 12th September 2024 during which 13 schools were covered and “it was observed that all the schools are critically short of teachers, with some teachers being transferred to other schools without replacement.” The Union said that this has led to situations where classrooms are combined, such as merging Class A and B into a single classroom, resulting in ineffective teaching and learning.

The AKM informed that specific cases of concern include GPS Aosenden, which has only four teachers for six classrooms. Classes are often canceled due to the shortage of teachers, especially when teachers are required to attend training sessions elsewhere. The lack of teachers has forced students to leave the school as they are unable to receive a proper education with only four teachers, it also highlighted.

Similarly, GPS Aosungkum is facing a crisis with only three teachers for six classrooms where class 2 and 3 are combined in a single class room. The absence of a Hindi teacher since 2020 has led to many parents transferring their children to other schools.

Due to the shortage of teachers, both primary schools have been unable to offer classes for class 5, further compounding the educational challenges faced by the students.

Further, the AKM has expressed grave concern over the lack of replacement for retired teachers in almost all the schools inspected and has appealed for immediate intervention to address these critical issues and ensure that all schools are adequately staffed to provide a high standard of education.

The AKM also calls upon the concerned authorities to deploy additional teachers to improve the student-to-teacher ratio across all schools and to ensure that classrooms are properly equipped. Emphasising the importance of a comprehensive inspection of all schools to assess the full extent of the teacher shortage and to initiate necessary corrective measures promptly, AKM has said that it will release a comprehensive data after all the schools are inspected for necessary actions to be initiated.