Ots 24 24033-62 Mainrepo

EVALUATION OF ASHRAMSHALAS & IDEAL
RESIDENTIAL SCHOOLS
By
SUDHA KANT
RAJNEESH KUMAR PANKAJ
Under the Guidance of Prof. Kameshwar Choudhary
Organizational Traineeship Segment

PRM 24
MAIN REPORT
Submitted to
Shri A.S. Sutaria, I.A.S.
Secretary, Social Justice and Empowerment Department
Government of Gujrat
September 6, 2004
INSTITUTE OF RURAL MANAGEMENT, ANAND

2004
Evaluation of Ashram Shalas and Ideal Residential Schools
EVALUATION OF ASHRAM SHALAS AND IDEAL

RESIDENTIAL SCHOOLS
1. INTRODUCTION
The Social Justice and Empowerment Department, Government of Gujarat, primarily
focuses on socio economic welfare measure for upliftment of backward section of
society. The department implements several developmental and welfare schemes for
the following categories of the people in the state:
0Scheduleddd Castes [S.C.]
1Nomadic Tribes [N.T.]
2Denotified Tribes [D.N.T.]
3Socially and Economically Backward Classes [S.E.B.C.]
4Economically Backward Classes [E.B.C.]
5Minorities.
6
The department also takes several welfare measures for orphans, destitute,
prostitutes, widows, beggars and old persons.
The Welfare Schemes implemented are broadly categorized as:
• Education
• Economic Uplift
• Health Housing
• Other Schemes
About more than 150 schemes related to education are being implemented by this
department. The Scheduledd caste development corporation is implementing
educational schemes. Under the scheme the government is dealing with the following
institutions:
• Ashram Shalas
• Ideal residential schools
• Grant-in aid hostels
2 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

• Government hostels
• Scholarship schemes
These schools were started at the time when there were very few educational
institutes especially primary schools in backward and remote areas. There are
separate Ashram Shalas and residential schools for Scheduled caste people and
Socially and Economically backward class people.
The study covers Ashram Shalas & Ideal Residential Schools meant for Scheduled
Castes and Socially and Economically Backward Class (SEBC) people. There are
separate Ashram Shalas for Scheduled castes students and for SEBC students.
Initially these schools were started for Scheduled Tribe (ST) community. Then it was
started for Scheduled Caste students, and then for students belonging to socially and
economically backward class across the state of Gujarat. These schools were started
to meet the educational requirement of underprivileged classes of the society
especially of those who were living in remote areas. Earlier during the rule of British
government there were very few educational institutes in rural areas. There were
virtually no education facilities for poor and underprivileged people. So the then
British Government started these schools for educating the under-privileged classes of
the society.
1.1 Ashram Shalas

Ashram Shalas were started in 1938 by the then British government. It was
started to educate and bring the ‘anti social’ elements and their wards to
mainstream. After independence it was continued with a backing of Gandhian
philosophy. However with a change in the political scenario in Gujarat over the
years, there have been changes in the ideology of these institutions according to
the needs.
Initially these Ashram Shalas were looked after by the Department of Primary
Education. In the year 1994 the Department of Primary Education transferred

this scheme to the Tribal Development department. Then in the year 1998 the
responsibility for implementing this scheme was delegated to the District Social
Welfare Officer (Developing Caste), at the district level.
Presently Social Justice and Empowerment Department sanction the new

Ashram Shala. For sanction of new Ashram Shalas, the Government invites
applications by advertising in daily newspapers. The interested parties file the
application form with the District officer. The District officer scrutinizes the
application and forwards the application with his/her suggestion. These
suggestions are only advisory in nature and are not binding on the Government.
Thereafter the Government takes necessary measures to sanction. The final
decision to sanction any new Ashram Shala lies with the government.
Following criteria are taken into consideration by the Government for sanction
of new Ashram Shalas:
 Voluntary agency should be registered under Public Trust Act – 1950 or
Society Registration Act – 1860.
 Copy of chalan of Rs. 500 attached with the application.
 Preference given to tribal backward area populated with backward classes.
 No other Ashram Shala shall be there within 5 km.
These Ashram Shalas provide education from Standard I up to Standard VII.

These are fully residential schools and are being owned, run and managed by
voluntary organizations with the financial support of the government of
Gujarat. The government has issued certain guidelines, which these
organizations are expected to follow. However these organizations are free to
take day-to-day decisions regarding management of these schools. Government
provides grants to these Ashram Shalas for a maximum of One Hundred and
Twenty students, four teaching and four non-teaching staffs. There is no
separate Ashram Shala for girls but it is compulsory for all the Ashram Shalas
to admit girls in number at least 20% of the sanctioned strength.

Every Ashram Shala provides education from Standard I to Standard VII. These
Ashram Shalas are fully residential schools for both boys and girls. There are
no separate Ashram Shalas for girls. An Ashram Shala can have any number of
students but the Government of Gujarat provides financial assistance only for a
maximum of One Hundred and Twenty students (both boys and girls taken
together), four teaching staffs and four non-teaching staffs. Govt. provides
monetary assistance to the tune of Rupees Four Hundred and Fifty(450/-) per
students per month. This amount is for the students boarding and lodging
facility, school uniforms, note books, writing materials and basic amenities for
daily use like bathing soap, hair oil etc. students get text books free of cost from
the Department of Primary Education. The course curriculum is decided by the
Department of Primary Education and the management of these Ashram Shalas
are supposed to follow this curriculum. The government has laid down the
guidelines regarding enrolment of students and has laid down the guidelines for
the maximum number of students for which the school will get the financial
assistance. After sanction of Ashram Shala it is progressively expanded into full
fledged primary school and number of employees is also increased as under:

Table 1: Approved strength and number of staffs

Year Standard Sanctioned Details of employee provided
Strength Teachers Cook/others Kamathi
1st year Std. 1,2 30 2 2 1
2nd year Std. 3 50 - - -
3rd year Std. 4 70 - 1 -
4th year Std. 5 90 1 - -
5th year Std. 6 110 - - -
6th year Std. 7 120 1 - -
Source: Social Justice and Empowerment Department; Govt. of Gujarat
1.2 Ideal Residential Schools

These schools were started on the model adopted by Andhra Pradesh
Government. Gujarat government adopted this model in 1986-87 and started
fully residential schools. There are separate schools for boys and girls. All of
these residential schools are running in mostly urban areas. These residential
schools are owned, run and managed by Government of Gujarat. These schools
provide education from class VIII up to class X. the education is free of cost for
all students. In addition to reading materials the students are provided uniforms,
boarding and lodging facilities and basic amenities for daily use.
2. OBJECTIVES OF STUDY
As regards the Ashram Shalas and IRS, the department of Social Justice and
Empowerment, Government of Gujarat faced certain decision related problems that
needed to be researched upon.

Decision Problems
1. How to improve the quality of education in the these schools

2. Whether the Government needs to continue funding Ashram Shalas and Ideal
Residential Schools.
Research Problems
1. Studying the performance of these schools and to explore whether they have been
able to fulfil the objectives for which they had been created
2. Analyzing the factors affecting the performance and efficiency of these Ashram
Shalas and residential schools, and to identify the areas of weakness and showing
scope for improving the performance of these Ashram Shalas and residential
schools.
Research Objectives
The broad objective of the study was to conduct ‘Evaluation of Ashram Shalas and
Ideal Residential Schools’. Keeping this in view, the specific objectives of the study
included followings:
• To understand the quantitative and qualitative performance of these schools
• To understand the present management system of these schools
• To understand the factors influencing the quality of teaching in these schools.
• To suggest possible measures for improving the quality of education in these
schools.

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
1. Research Design
Our study comprises of understanding the importance of these Ashram Shalas
and Residential Schools from the perspective of target population, the complete
structure of this system, and effectiveness of these educational institutions. The
research design was Descriptive and Analytical in nature.
2. Research Tools
In course of analyzing factors affecting the quality of education in these
educational institutions and the effectiveness of these schools we had studied
various aspects of these schools. We carried out survey through questionnaire to
cover all aspects related to this study. For this purpose we visited these Ashram
Shalas and residential schools. We conducted survey of beneficiaries, teachers,
and management to generate all data for our purpose. We also talked to parents
of beneficiaries wherever we got the opportunity.
In addition In-depth discussion was held with key informants like school
headmaster/secretary and the school management committee members. We had
group discussions with teachers and students separately. We also adopted non-
participant observation method to see and understand the actual operation of the
schools.
3. Scope of the Study

• The study was confined to Six districts of Gujarat namely Anand, Rajkot,
Mehsana, Vadodra, Gandhinagar, Surendranagar on the assumption that
these districts will provide the representative sample of target population.
• Our study was mainly confined to Ashram Shalas, Ideal Residential
schools.

Figure 1: Districts of Study
Districts where study was conducted
4. Data Requirements and Sources

The details are as under-
I. Data Source
 Information from the beneficiaries:
 Information from the present students.
 Information from the parents of the students.
 Information from the teachers
 Information from the administrative staff.
 Information from non-participants (i.e. the community members,
parents of students of the society).

II. Data collected
i. From School Management

 Numbers of teachers
 Qualifications of teachers
 Salary of teachers
 Number of non-teaching staffs
 Salary of non-teaching staffs
 Any other benefits to teaching and non-teaching staffs
 Total number of students
 Number of boys and girls
 Number of boys and girls students in each class
 Teaching aids available
 Number of classrooms
 Facilities provided to students
 Criteria for promoting students
 Evaluation pattern
 Scheduledd of the institutions
 Course curriculum
 Number of students enrolled in each class during last five years
 Number of students passed out during last five years
 Boarding and lodging facilities
 Sources of funding and amount
 Problems faced in getting funds
 Utilization of funds
 Effects of delays in getting funds
 Criteria for selecting teachers
 Process of recruitment of teachers
 Criteria of selecting students

 Process of enrollment of students

 Medical facilities for students
 Problems faced in running schools
- Management related problems
- Teachers related problems
- Students related problems
- Infrastructure related problems
- Parents related problems
- Hostel related problems
- Financial problems
 Solution to these problems
ii. From Teachers

 Salary of teachers
 Qualification of teachers including teachers training
 Service period, nature of job (i.e. permanent, temporary or contractual)
 Previous experience
 Problems faced in teaching
 Modes of teaching
 Any other problem
 Solution to these problem
iii. From Students

 Total number of students class wise
 Lodging and boarding facilities
 Any other facility
 Quality of teaching
 Their problems in studying
 Solution to these problems


5 Sampling Plan
Population for our sampling included the followings:
Ahrmashalas and Ideal Residential schools: All Ashram Shalas and Ideal
Residential Schools formed the population of our study.
Teachers: All the teachers teaching in the above-mentioned institutions. Each

teacher was administered a questionnaire which included data relating to their
qualifications, the problems faced by them and their suggestions regarding
improvements that can be made. We used to interact with school teachers in
absence of principal or members of managing trust. This was done to ensure
that teachers could express their views without the influence of school
management.
Students: We conducted group discussion with the students to get the required
information and to understand the quality of teaching, boarding and lodging
facility and their problems. This also helped in understanding the ground reality
of these schools.
We conducted group discussion with students of standard five to standard seven

in the Ashram Shala and all the classes in the Ideal Residential Schools we
visited for our study. We didn’t discussed with students of standard four and
below because of language barrier as we could not speak Gujarati. We used to
send teachers outside the classrooms to make sure that students express
themselves freely without any influence of teachers and school administration.
We used to interact with students alone in absence of school teachers and
school administration. So samples of students were not taken.

Variables on which samples were collected:

Initially the secondary data regarding all Ashram Shalas and residential schools
were collected. These data were studied and the Ashram Shalas and residential
schools were ranked as high performer, medium performer and low performer.
The ranking were done on following variables:
• Number of students enrolled in all the classes (Girls and Boys separately)
• Number of students passed out
• Number and percentage of drop outs (Girls and Boys separately)
• Percentage of marks students got in the public level exams
• Physical Infrastructure
• Quality of teachers (qualification and experience)
• Pattern of enrolment of students
• Number of teaching and non-teaching staffs
All these variables were considered together for grading the schools in each
category. Then one school from each category was taken for In-depth study to
get the complete information for this study.
The following variables were also considered in selecting the schools for In-
depth study:
Location: we covered school from the urban area and from rural area. This
helped in comparing and understanding the difference in working of these
schools due to different location.
Target Population: we included schools for both the Scheduled Caste people
and the Socially and Economically backward class people.
We also included schools for both boys as well as girls.

Year of Inception: These schools were started at different point of time so we

categorized the schools in three sub categories depending on their year of
inception. These categories were old schools, medium schools and new schools.
Table 2: Division of school on the basis of year of inception

YEAR OF INCEPTION CATEGORY NUMBER OF SCHOOLS
S. E. B. C. S. C.
Up to 1980 Old 3 0
Between 1980 and 1990 Medium 3 5
After 1990 New 11 7
6 Sample Size
Our sample size was 28 schools (13 from Residential Schools and 15 from
Ashram Shalas). These twenty seven schools covered all the sub categories so
that the sample is representative of the population.
Table 3: Distribution of sample as per year of inception

CATEGORY NUMBER OF ASHRAM SHALAS STUDIED
Year of Inception S. E. B. C. S. C.
Up to year 1980 2 0
Between year 1981 and 1990 2 2
After year 1990 5 4

Table 4: Number of Residential Schools studied

District N S.C. S.E.B.C.
o.of
Boys Girls Boys Girls
IRS
Urban Rural Urban Rural Urban Rural Urban Rural
Gandhinagar 3 1 1 1
Mehsana 2 0 2
Rajkot 3 1 2
Surendranagar 1 1
Vadodara 3 1 1 1
Kheda 1 0 1
Total 13 2 1 2 0 3 3 1 1
Table 5: Number of Ashram Shalas studied

District Total no. S.C. S.E.B.C. N.T./D.N.T.
Urban
Rural Urban Rural
Anand 5 1 3 1
Rajkot 5 2 1 2 0
Mehsana 5 2 1 1 1
Total 15 - 5 2 6 2
N.T. = Nomadic Tribes, D.N.T.= Denotified Tribes
4 FINDINGS
We covered 28 schools in total (13 Residential schools and 15 Ashram Shalas). We
talked to teachers, students, non-teaching staffs, management and some of the parents
of students who came to meet their wards. Some of the findings were astonishing,

amazing and really disappointing but we could see some ray of hope also during our
study.
1 Ashram Shalas
The Ashram Shalas were started to provide education to the children of
underprivileged society. Government decided to give grant to those voluntary
organisations who are interested in running the Ashram Shalas. The grant was
supposed to be only an assistance to the voluntary organisations. However the
scheme is not going as planned. The voluntary organisations are solely
depended on the government grant and not using their own resources in running
the schools. This has affected the facilities being provided to students and the
quality of teaching. None of the Ashram Shalas have more than four class
rooms where as there are six classes running in these schools. None of the
ashramshals have more than four teachers. The total financial burden has been
passed on to the government and is not shared by the school management.
Whenever we reached schools we found every thing in right place. The school
management was informed in advance about our visit so every thing was put in
right place at the time of our visit so it was quite difficult to get the real picture.
We visited two schools in Anand district where management were not informed
in advance about our visit. We reached both the schools at around 3.00 p.m. The
findings at that school were shocking.
In one school we saw teachers and principal sleeping out side the class room
during class hour. One student was doing leg massage of principal. Two
students were carrying soil on their head to make sewage system to avoid water
logging in rainy season. Others were either sleeping or playing.
In other school principal was not present. None of the faculty members were
ready to say anything about his whereabouts. We could not get any concrete
information about the school. Classes were over at 4.00 p.m. only whereas as
per school curriculum the classes should continue till 5.00 p.m.

The broad findings are as follows

• Presence of Ashram Shalas in remote and inaccessible areas: Government
of Gujarat has made valiant effort to reach the remote and inaccessible areas
of the state of Gujarat to provide education to the underprivileged class of
the society. It has promoted the voluntary organizations to run Ashram
Shalas in the remote areas. Government has provided all the necessary
monetary and other assistance to these voluntary organizations to run
Ashram Shalas. In absence of these Ashram Shalas those under privileged
may not have got any form of education.
• Benefits to students: In these Ashram Shalas the students are not only
studying but also getting two square meals a day. Students are also getting
uniforms and medical care.
• Accountability: We found out that school management is not accountable to

the government for the annual grant which they are getting. The prime
purpose of establishing these schools is to provide education to the
underprivileged class of society. These Ashram Shalas were started mainly
to educate the children of migrant labours. The food and lodging facilities
are only ancillary to the main purpose of teaching. But the school
management is not accountable for quality of teaching being imparted to
students. So the basic purpose of promoting these Ashram Shalas is getting
defeated. These Ashram Shalas seems to be working more like small
children home rather than a school.
• Department’s basis of evaluation: The department of social welfare is more

concerned about the food and lodging facilities and lesser about the quality
of education. The audit report of department talks about the space available
with schools, food being provided to students, number of teachers in school,
number of students in school but there is no remark about education. The
prime purpose of the schools should be to educate the students which

unfortunately not happening presently. The schools are more like children
home than a school where students are two square meals a day and getting
place to sleep at night.
• Punishment measures: Government does annual auditing of these Ashram

Shalas. If there is any lack in physical infrastructure then as a punishment
measures the sanctioned strength of school is reduced.
• Admission in standard I and II: School management gives admission in

standard I and II to only those children whose elder brother or sister is
studying in that school. This practice is followed in all the schools unless
there is a shortfall in meeting the target of total sanctioned strength.
• Dropout: Students are found leaving the schools in between the session and
also at the end of session before completing seventh standard. Normally
girls are taken away by their parents when they reach standard six or seven.
The Drop out ratio of Ashramshala is less than the average drop out rate of
Gujarat. Drop out rate of Girls in Ashram Shalas is found to be more than
that of boys in past two years. The dropout rate of girls is maximum in
standard seven. The drop out rate in Scheduledd castes Ashram Shalas is
more than that of Ashram Shalas belonging to Socially and Economically
backward class category.
Table 6: Drop out rate in Ashram Shalas

2003-04 2002-03
DROP OUT RATE BOYS GIRLS BOYS GIRLS
Average 10.66 16.46 7.66 10.34
Std. 1 26.15 27.55 2.08 8.33
Std. 2 6.43 10.00 10.11 14.29
Std. 3 2.86 11.43 9.56 7.36
Std. 4 8.06 16.85 8.51 10.20
Std. 5 6.02 17.50 8.51 4.42
Std. 6 15.13 15.36 8.25 2.08
Std. 7 10.00 16.53 6.58 25.72

Table 7: Drop out Rate of SC and SEBC Ashram Shalas

CATEGORY 2003-04 2002-03
BOYS GIRLS BOYS GIRLS
SC 23.97 11.51 7.58 14.27
SEBC 7.61 14.62 7.86 6.15
The reasons for drop outs are found to be followings:

 Unable to adapt to the school environment: This has been cited to be the
prime reason for leaving the school in between by the students. This
factor came out during discussion with the teachers. The village children
are not able to adapt themselves to the restrictive environment of
Ashram Shalas. They are used to the environment of village schools
where there are no restrictions.
 Parents migrating to far away areas: Parents used to take their wards
away along with themselves when they have to migrate to far away
areas for earning their livelihood. Since there are Ashram Shalas all over
Gujarat so parents wish to keep their wards in nearby Ashram Shalas.
This also reduces their expenses which they have to incur in visiting
their wards. If the children are studying in far away Ashram Shalas,
parents have to spend larger amount each time they visit their wards so
they want to keep their wards in nearby Ashram Shalas.
 Household work: Girl children are taken away by her parents when they
reach in standard six or seven. Normally girls reach the age of 12-13
years by the time they reach standard six or seven. At this age they are
taken away for household work. They are supposed to take care of their
younger siblings and also to do the household work.

 Child Labour: Child labour is found to be one of the most prominent

reasons for drop outs of boys in industrial area of Matel. There are many
manufacturing units in nearby areas of Matel where a 12-13 years old
boy can earn around Rs. 2000-2500 per month. So parents take away
their wards to work in those units once they reach the age of 12-13
years.
• Admission Procedure: We inspected the admission forms of current year.

There were hardly any photographs in admission forms of newly admitted
students. So we fail to establish the credibility of new admissions. No
entrance test is taken at the time of admission of students so the credibility of
mark sheet of students is not tested.
• Appointment of teachers: Teachers are not given identity card by the school
management or State Government so genuine identity of teachers could not
be established. There were no photographs of teachers either with the school
management or with the concerned government department. Most of the
teachers who are appointed by school management are relatives of the
school management. These teachers are not competent to teach. Teachers are
appointed only to complete the formalities of keeping the adequate number
of teachers in order to get the full amount of annual grant from the state
government. When we asked the school management about the quality of
teachers they said that since they could not find competent teachers so they
have appointed these teachers. School management were found least
interested about the quality of education being imparted in the school.
• Pattern of teaching: In Ashram Shalas one teacher is teaching all subjects in

one class irrespective of his/her level of knowledge. The teaching
Scheduledd is not as per competency of teachers. This is affecting the quality
of teaching in these schools.

• Teachers: There were large instances of dummy teachers in school. They

were brought just on our day of visit. Some of the teachers failed to answer
our queries correctly about their salary. For instance one of the teachers in
Ashram Shala said that she is getting Rs. 4000/- per month as fixed salary
whereas government gives only Rs. 2500 per month to teachers for the first
five years. Quality of teachers was very poor. Except for two teachers, none
of the teachers in Ashram Shala who are teaching maths and science in
standard six and seven could solve the maths and science problem of
standard six and standard seven respectively. Some of the teachers could not
even solve simple addition and multiplication problem. A teacher claming to
be PTC could not solve simple addition and multiplication problem. That
teacher was appointed by government and is teaching for the last four years
in that school.
• Teacher Student Ratio: Teacher Student ratio in Ashram Shalas is found to be

high compared to the prescribed norms of government. In all 15 Ashram
Shalas we studied apart from three Ashram Shalas, in all other cases the
teacher student ratio is found to be in line with the government guidelines.
However when the number of teachers is compared to the number of classes
going on at a time then problem is revealed.
Table 8: Student Teacher ratio in Ashram Shalas

STUDENT TEACHER RATIO NUMBER OF SCHOOLS
0-30 6
30-40 5
40-50 1
50 and above 3

Fig 2: Student Teacher ratio
70 64
Student Teacher ratio 60
60 52
50 43
39 39
40 31 33 30 30 32 30 30
30 24
18
20
10
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Ashram Shalas
Note: The figure is rounded off to nearest integer.
Table 9: Infrastructure
INFRASTRUCTURE / FACILITY PROVIDED IN NUMBER
OF SCHOOLS OUT OF 15,
PERCENTAGE WISE
Pucca Building 100
Separate classroom for each standard 0
Separate living room 46
Quarter for teaching staff 46
Quarter for non-teaching staff 46
Playground 70
Desks 0
Blackboard 100
Maps & Charts 77
Library 0
Laboratory 0
Drinking Water Facility 100
Electricity Connection 100
Sports Equipments 77
Musical Equipments 70
Toys for children 0
Park 23
Computer Education 0

• Staff Quarter:
 Teaching Staff: Teachers are not staying in the asramshala at night. Out of
15 schools we surveyed, in 7 of the schools there was no sign of teachers
staying at night in the school campus. There is no staff quarter. In 3 cases
teachers even confessed that they are not staying with the students at
night.
 Non- Teaching Staff: Government is providing salary for 4 non-teaching
staff to one ashramshal. The kamathi is supposed to train students in
agricultural activities. In 3 school we found out that there is no
agricultural land. Kamati is doing household work for the school
management and is getting paid by government.
• Cook: we found that food is being prepared by girl students. In two schools
we saw girls cooking food for the entire school. In at least three schools we
could identify one dummy cook.
• Food: Quality of food is good in Ashram Shalas. Students are getting three
meals a day. Students are getting about 150 – 200 ml. of milk every day.
• Focus on Strength: Management more interested in maintaining the number

of students to not less than sanctioned strength in order to receive the
maximum grant from government.
• Class room: The number of class rooms in Ashram Shalas is found to less.
So its common practice in Ashram Shalas to run combined classes of two or
more class together. Class rooms lack adequate facilities. There is no
furniture in class rooms for students.

• Living room: There is separate arrangement for boys and girl students for
sleeping at night. Seven out of Fifteen Ashram Shalas found to have separate
living rooms for students. In other cases, same room is being used for
teaching during day time and for sleeping purpose at night. Out of these
seven Ashram Shalas in four Ashram Shalas class rooms are also used in
addition to other rooms for lodging of students. In case the Ashram Shalas
do not have separate lodging facilities for students, it causes problem when
any student fall sick. There is no proper arrangement for taking care of those
students.
• Beds: Students have to bring their own beddings. None of the Ashram Shalas
have any cot for students. So students used to sleep on floor.
• Medical facility: All the Ashram Shalas have first aid box. There are
medicines for common ailments like fever, stomach pain, cold e.t.c. In case
of students falling seriously ill, his/her parents are informed and they take
away their wards till he/she gets fit.
In case Ashram Shalas are located in remote areas, local medical

practitioners are contacted in case of any emergency. This can prove to be
dangerous for students because these local medical practitioners are not
qualified enough to prescribe any medicine. In one instance we found that
one boy suffering form malaria has been prescribed medicine for normal
fever.
• Attendance: Ashramshala is able to attract students from all over the state of
Gujarat. We found out that apart from three Ashram Shalas, in all other
Ashram Shalas more than seventy percent of the registered strength of
students were present. The attendance of students was found to be good in
all the ashram shalas across both the categories namely ashram shala
belonging to SCs and SEBCs.

Table 10: Percentage of students present in school

PERCENTAGE OF ATTENDANCE NUMBER OF SCHOOLS
(compared to registered strength)
SEBC SC
Up to 50% 1 1
More than 50% up to 70% 1 0
More than 70% up to 90% 4 2
More than 90% 3 3
Table 11: Percentage of students present in Ashram Shalas

SCHOOLS NUMBER OF STUDENTS
As Per Actually Percentage
School Present Of
Record Attendance
1 125 121 96.80
2 131 118 90.08
3 105 95 90.48
4 120 87 72.50
5 60 54 90.00
6 103 85 82.52
7 120 42 35.00
8 128 111 86.72
9 71 35 49.30
10 96 98 102.08
11 154 116 75.32
12 120 96 80.00
13 120 78 65.00
14 116 112 96.55
15 128 122 95.31

Fig 3: Number of students in Ashram shalas
180
160
Sanctioned
140 Strength
120 No. of Students
as per record
100
Number of
80 students present
60
40
20
2
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15
• School Records about students: School records are not properly maintained
in all the Ashram Shalas. In two Ashram Shalas we found that school records
are not maintained properly. The validity of records was difficult to
establish.
For instance, in one ashramsala we talked to teachers and found that the drop
out rate is around 25 percent whereas as per school record the drop out rate
is nil in past three years. In case of other ashramsala the attendance
registered was updated till last month only. Principal of that ashramsala said
that the strength of ashramsala has to be reduced and some alteration in
attendance record has to be made so the records are not updated.
This gives the indication that school records may be fudged.
• Quality of students: Quality of students in terms of their academic

competencies is very poor. We conducted examination of students in all the
Ashram Shalas across all the classes. We found that competencies of

students are below the expected level. Expected level means a student of
standard six should be able to solve the problems from the text book of
standard four and five.
• Internal Examination: Internal exams in Ashram Shalas up to standard seven

are not conducted as per the rules and spirit of exams. We found out that
students could not solve the problems of previous exams where as he/she has
solved the same problem in his/her answer sheet in the previous exams. On
further enquiry it was revealed by students as well as some of the teachers
that teachers used to solve some of the problems on blackboard and students
used to copy that answer. Thus competency level of students cannot be
ascertained on basis of the marks obtained by students in exam.
We also found out that wrong answers have been marked right by teachers
while evaluating answer sheets. This we found in over 90 percent of the
answer sheets we checked. On further enquiry we came to know that the
teacher who has evaluated the answer sheets himself do not know the right
answer.
• Nexus between school management and Government Officials:

There seems to be nexus between department officials and school
management. The school management were informed well in advance about
our visit to respective Ashram Shalas. School management tried to put up a
clean picture of respective Ashram Shalas. This assumption is strengthened
by the fact that some of the shortcomings in Ashram Shalas are quite
apparent which unfortunately has gone unnoticed by the department officers.
2 Ideal Residential Schools
We studied 13 Ideal Residential Schools (IRS) across the five districts of

Gujarat. We stayed in one of the IRS for one night in Kadi (Mehsana).
Government of Gujarat has put great effort in making education accessible to

students of underprivileged class of the society. The department of social

welfare and empowerment is working against all odds in providing education to
poor and weaker section of the society. Department has to coordinate with three
other departments namely Public Welfare department for construction and
maintenance of physical infrastructure, Education Department for providing
books and conducting exams and Finance Department for funding this program.
In spite of these difficulties it is doing well in promoting education.
Our broad findings are as follows

• Students: Like Ashrmashalas IRS is also able to attract students. We found
that apart from three schools in all other schools the registered number of
students is in and around 90% of the sanctioned strength. In four schools the
number is nearly 100 %.
Fig: 4 Percentage of students admitted
120
100 97 94 99 99
100 91 91 93 88 91
80 69
62 57
60
40
20
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Note: The percentage figure is rounded off to nearest integer
• Teachers: Teachers in Residential Schools are well qualified and

knowledgeable to teach till standard 10th. The minimum qualification of
teachers is B.A., B. Ed. or B. Sc., B. Ed. depending on the subject they are
supposed to teach. Number of teachers varies widely across the schools. The
number ranges from 4 to 12 teachers.

Principals and Teachers take pride in quoting the class 10th result of their
school. This shows that there is a feeling of belongingness among teachers.
They are found to be caring for students.
Fig 5: Number of teachers per Residential School
14 12
12
10
10
7
8 6 6 6
5
6 4 4 4 4 4 4
4
2
0
Savali
Manjalpur
Gandhinagar
Surendranagar
Gandhinagar
Gandhinagar
Gandhinagar
Kheralu
Morbi
Kadi
Old Padra Rd.

Rajkot
Rajkot
• Student Teacher Ratio: Student Teacher ratio varies widely across the
schools. The ratio is as low as 16.60 to as high as 31.50. It shows that
teachers are not evenly distributed across all the schools. There is lack of
planning in appointing and deploying teachers in various schools. For
instance in Gandhinagar one school has student teacher ratio as high as
31.50 and other school has this ratio as low as 19.80. It means in one school
for every 31.50 students there is one teacher whereas in other school there is
one teacher for every 19.80 students on an average. This uneven distribution
is affecting the quality of teaching in the schools and at the same time it is
putting additional burden on some of the teachers. The student teacher ratio
is high in all the schools of Rajkot whereas its low in all the schools of
Vadodra. The number of student per school in vadodra is very less compared

to that of Rajkot but the number of teachers in Vadodra is proportionately

higher.

Fig 6: Student Teacher Ratio in Residential School
35 31.5
30 27.3 27.3 27.8 27.3
24.3 24.7
25 22.5
18.5 19.8
20 17.7 16.6 17.0
15
10
5
0
Morbi
Savali
Kadi
Rajkot
Rajkot
Manjalpur
Kheralu
Gandhinagar
Gandhinagar
Gandhinagar
Gandhinagar
Old Padra Rd.
Surendranagar
• Quality of Students: Newly admitted students in class eight were found to be
promising and their level of understanding was higher compare to students
of class nine and class ten of that school. This trend we found across all the
schools. However level of knowledge of students in residential school was
less than expected level. A student studying in standard eight, nine or ten is
not able to solve the basic mathematical problem of standard six and seven.
This lack of knowledge is attributed to the poor quality of education at the
primary level.
In one residential school we found quality of students to be very good.

Students studying in standard eight, nine or ten was able to answer the
questions from his text books.
During discussion with principal and teachers we came to know that quality
of students admitted in that school is good compared to other schools. On an
average that school receives about 400 application forms for 40-50 seats so it
gets good students.

• Appointment of teachers: Teachers are appointed by government. Initially

advertisement is placed in newspapers about the vacancy. Then after taking
interviews teachers found competent are appointed in residential schools.
• Transfer and Deployment of teachers: There is lack of planning in transfer

and deployment of teachers. The number of teachers varies from 4 to 12
across the different schools. On taking closer look we found that for a
particular subject there is more than one teacher in a school and at the same
time some other school does not have any teacher for that subject. There is
no guideline about transfer of teachers. So it is left to the willingness of
department officials as to whom to transfer, when to transfer and where to
transfer.
• Nexus between teachers and higher government authorities: We found that

there is nexus between some of the teachers and higher government
authorities. Teachers are using this nexus for getting posted to a better city.
One of the teachers while talking to us told that she is trying for transfer to
one school based in city. She was found to be connected to one of the senior
official in the department.
• Admission of students: Entrance test of students is taken at the time of

admission. Then a merit list of students is prepared after taking average of
the marks obtained by students in entrance exams and in class seventh, eight
or nine depending on class for which the student has applied for admission.
We have gone through some of the merit lists prepared by schools and found
that students are not getting even half of the marks in entrance exams
compared to what they got in class seven, eight or nine.
All the schools take entrance exams separately. Every school prepares its
own merit list. Sometimes interested student fail to get admission because
he/she was unable to secure the required marks. Under this system some

schools have the number of students in excess of the authorised number and
in some schools the number is less than the sanctioned strength.
• Infrastructure: Out of 13 schools we visited, four schools are facing great

difficulty with regard to space for classrooms and lodging facility. There is
not enough space for students to sit in classrooms. This makes teaching
difficult.
• Medical Facility: All the residential schools have first aid box and they have
medicines for common ailments. In case the condition of any student is
serious, he/she is taken to nearby hospitals. In one school we found that the
school principal has hired a local doctor for monthly check up of students.
The doctor charges Rs. 10/- per student per month. This system seems to be
fine and workable.
• School Uniforms: We came to know through discussion with principals that

the fund approved for school uniform per student has not been increased in
last 10 years. At present Rs. 240 is sanctioned for a pair of uniform. This
amount covers both the cost of cloths and cost of stitching. This amount is
less than the market rate at which a pair of uniform can be purchased. So in
some schools students are asked to contribute towards the cost of uniforms.
In two schools principal accepted that some amount of fund allocated for
some other purpose has to be used in providing uniforms to students. In one
schools we found out that old uniforms are being taken away from passing
out batch and being given to new students.
• Political interference in admission process: School principals and teachers

have accepted that political leaders and higher government officials
interferes in the admission of students. Some students have to be admitted
due to political pressure.

• Students from affluent class: In case of SEBC schools we found that some of
the students are from well to do families but they took admission under
Economically Backward class.
• Department’s basis of evaluation: We found that every school principal has

been instructed to improve its performance. The passing percentage of
students in class 10th is set as benchmark for judging the performance of
schools. The principals and teachers were found to be concerned about the
students’ performance in class 10th exams.
• Students’ performance in class 10th: The performance of students in class 10th

is found to be poor. Very few students are passing class 10th with more than
sixty percent marks. In all the schools we found that students are getting
around 90% marks in Physical Education and around 85% marks in Sanskrit
but the marks obtained in Maths and Science is not more than 40%. This
shows that quality of education is not good especially in Mathematics and
Science.
However in one school in Gandhinagar we found very good performance of
students in class 10th in all the subjects especially in Maths and Science. The
students have scored about 80-90% marks in mathematics and science in
class 10th.
We came across one interesting finding while doing our study. We went
through the results of last three years of students in class 10 th and found out
that students opting for English as second language in class 10th are on an
average performing better than students opting for Hindi as second language.
This trend we found in all the schools.
• Retention capacity: Students are not able to retain whatever they have been
taught in previous year. Students studying in standard 10th could not solve
problems given in text book of standard 8th and 9th.

• Punishment measures: Department used to transfer teachers and principal of

poorly performing schools if the performance of class 10th students does not
improve. This makes teachers work hard on students and try for better result.
• Dropout: The drop out ratio of both the boys and girls in Ashram Shalas is
less than the state average. It is about 10%. The highest drop out rate is in
class 8th compared to class 9th and 10th.
The reason for dropouts is found to be followings:

 Unable to adapt to the school environment: This has been cited to be the
prime reason for leaving the school in between by the students. The
village children are not able to adapt themselves to the restrictive
environment of IRS. They are used to the environment of village schools
where there are no restrictions. Sometimes they face health problem also
due to change in environment.
• Admission Procedure: We inspected the admission forms of current year.

There were hardly any photographs in admission forms of newly admitted
students.
• Staff Quarter:
Teaching Staff: Two out of thirteen schools we visited have staff
quarters in the school campus. These schools have their own building
and have all the infrastructure.
Non- Teaching Staff: Five of the residential schools have separate
quarters for non-teaching staffs. In five of these schools either hostel
warden or teachers used to stay with students at night.
• Food: We found that of recently contractors are preparing food. At the

beginning of the year tender is floated and bid is invited. Contractor

bidding lowest price is awarded contract for food. This has affected the
quality of food in residential schools.
In one school we found that students are not getting even stomach full
meal. There is lack of proper monitoring by school officials about quality
and quantity of food.
Table 10: Infrastructure

INFRASTRUCTURE / FACILITY PROVIDED IN NO OF
SCHOOLS OUT OF 13,
PERCENTAGE WISE
Pucca Building 100
Separate classroom for each standard 100
Separate quarter for teaching staffs 23
Separate quarter for non-teaching staffs 46
Playground 54
Desks 62
Blackboard 100
Maps & Charts 69
Library 0
Laboratory 23
Drinking Water Facility 100
Electricity Connection 100
Sports Equipments 54
Musical Equipments 70
Separate living room 92
Computer Education 0
5 QUALITY OF EDUCATION
The national policy on education emphasizes on the quality of education. The quality
of education comprises of both harder as well as softer issues. . It includes availability
of infrastructure such as buildings, teachers including trained teachers, and the quality
of instruction, course syllabi, etc. With this perspective, one cannot refer to quality of
education without looking into the availability of all these attributes of education.

Quality in education thus becomes a whole list of tangibles and intangibles, which the
government is called upon to deliver.
The evaluation of the institutions was done on the basis of harder as well as softer
issues. The harder issues consisted of the infrastructural facilities and the physical
facilities provided to the students. The softer issues consisted of the quality of the
education being imparted to the students. In general, quality of education is an
umbrella concept which includes all those aspects of education which make it
efficient and good. The earlier part of the report consisted of the other issues apart
from the quality of instruction and the knowledge being gained by the students. For
this the knowledge base of the students was tested assuming that the result of the test
would be an indicator of the quality of education being imparted. The check of the
knowledge base of the students would also reveal the skills and the efforts of the
teachers and would be a judge to their abilities. The scope of study was limited to
three districts of Anand, Mehsana & Rajkot. In total 15 Ashram Shalas were covered.
A total of 102 students comprising 100 female and 102 male were randomly selected
for the test. For ideal residential schools study was conducted in the districts of
Rajkot, Surendra Nagar, Baroda and Gandhi Nagar in 13 different schools. A
total of 169 students were randomly picked up for the tests comprising of 109 male
and 60 female students.
5.1 Criteria for Judging the Qualitative Aspects in Education

The following criteria were adopted for the test:
a) Ashram Shalas:
1. To test the quality of education being imparted in the Ashram Shalas we

conducted tests on students. For the tests we took the help of an NGO
PRATHAM, which works, in the fields of education. The NGO had
developed a set of question paper to test the quality of education being

imparted in the primary schools in Gujarat. During the initial phases of our
field visits one member of this NGO who trained us how to conduct the
tests by administering the test in the Rajkot district. The test was divided in
two parts, the first was for the class 2 to 4 and the second was for class 5 to
7. The tests had four questions with subparts with ascending order of
difficulty. Tests were conducted for two subjects’ language and math. The
tests were conducted on students who were studying in these institutions for
at least one year. All the questions were in Gujarati language.
2. The questions in Gujarati language started with the recognition of the

Gujarati alphabets the next step was simple words further came sentences
and thus the difficulty of the questions increased.
3. The questions of mathematics were on the same line, starting with the
recognition of numbers. The next step was to find out which was the greater
or smaller of the two given numbers. Further simple arithmetical sums of
addition, subtraction, multiplication and division were administered.
4. Students were administered the questions in the ascending order of

difficulty. The student who could solve none was marked as zero and those
who could solve the first question were graded as one. Likewise the
students were graded from one to five.
5. Students were selected randomly.
b). Ideal Residential Schools:

1. To test the quality of education in the IRS’s questions were devised
keeping in mind the syllabus being followed in the schools. Generally
the district education board for different exams conduced in these
schools is setting the question paper. We took the help of these different

papers set by the district education board in preparing the questions to

test the quality of education being imparted in these schools.
2. As soon as the students join the school in the 8th standard they are
administered a test by the school authorities to judge their ability so that
they can target the weaker sections of the students. The tests are
conducted in mathematics, science, social studies and language and are
better known as diagnostic tests. The tests consist of mixtures of
question of 5th, 6th and 7th standard. We conducted tests in three subjects
namely math, science and Gujarati language. Again four questions were
given to the students, which had subparts and were in the ascending
order of difficulty. The first question consisted of arithmetical sums
consisting of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. The
other three questions were taken from the papers of the diagnostic tests
conducted by the school.
3. For the students of 9th and 10th examination papers of 8th and 9th in
which they had appeared were taken from the school and four questions
with subparts in the ascending order of difficulty was administered. The
first question consisted of arithmetical sums consisting of addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division. The remaining three questions
were taken from the question papers set by district education board.
Only students who were studying for at least one year were chosen for
the tests.
4. Random selection of students was done in the class.
5.2 Findings Regarding Ashram Shalas
1) Overall performance: The findings suggest that the students were well
below par with the scholastic skills required. The average performance of

the students’ in the tests conducted shows that the average grade of all the
202 students in language is 2.27 and in mathematics is 1.39. Out of the
maximum grade of 4 which logically interprets the understanding of the
student in the previous class the students scored very less. This suggests the
poor affairs of the scholastic knowledge that the students possess.
Table 11: Overall average performance subject wise

SUBJECT AVERAGE GRADE
Mathematics 1.39
Language 2.27
Fig. 7: Overall Performance
2.5 2.27
Grades obtained
2
1.39
1.5
1
0.5
0
Maths Language
Subject
2) Performance sex wise: Both the sexes have done badly in terms of grades
obtained but on a comparison note male have fared slightly better than the
females. Males have obtained an average grade of 2.36 and 1.51 in language
and mathematics respectively. Females have obtained an average of 2.18
and 1.27 in language and mathematics respectively. A thorough glance at
the various data reveals that even students of class seven could not do
simple mathematical calculation of addition and subtraction. In language
too there was similar state of affairs.

Table 12: Sex-Wise Performance

SEX \ LANGUAGE MATHEMATICS
SUBJECTS
Male 2.36 1.51
Female 2.18 1.27
Fig. 8: Sex-wise Performance
2.36
2.5 2.18
Grades obtained
2
1.51
1.5 1.27 Male
1 Female
0.5
0
Language Maths
Subject
3) Performance subject wise:
a) Language: In the Gujarati language there were 8 students who

scored zero which means that they were not able to recognize even
the alphabets of the Gujarati language. Among these some were of
class two, some of class three and the rest of them were in class four.
Each of these students was studying in the Ashramshala for at least
one year. Only 38 students of the total 202 students selected were
able to read the Gujarati language with ease. Rests of them were in
between these two extremes.

Table 13: Performances in Gujarati language

GRADES OBTAINED NUMBER OF STUDENTS
0 8
1 57
2 47
3 52
4 38
Total 202
Fig. 9: Performance in Gujarati language
57
60 52
47
No. of students
50
38
40
30
20
8
10
0
0 1 2 3 4
Grades obtained
b) Mathematics: There were 23 students who were not able to

recognize the numbers these students obtained a grade of zero. The
major chunk of the sample scored one which means that these
students were able to recognize the numbers but was not able to
carry out simple mathematical operation of addition. Only six
students were found who could carry out the operations of addition,
subtraction, multiplication and division.

Table 14: Performance in mathematics

GRADES NUMBER OF STUDENTS
0 23
1 106
2 50
3 17
4 6
Total 202
Fig. 10: Performance in Mathematics
120 106
no. of students
100
80
60 50
40 23 17
20 6
0
0 1 2 3 4
Grades obtained
5.3 Findings Regarding Ideal Residential Schools

In ideal residential schools a sample of 169 students comprising of 91 male
and 78 female were randomly selected. Tests were conducted in three
subjects namely Gujarati language mathematics and science. Except the 8th
standard all the students taken for the tests had been studying at least for
one year.
1) Overall performance: The overall performance of the students

studying in ideal residential schools shows that the students performed
quiet below the level of education they should possess. In Gujarati
language the average grade was 2.88. The average grade in mathematics
and science was 1.35 and 1.71 respectively. The grades indicate that the

students were comparatively better in Gujarati language than

mathematics and science.
Table 15: Overall Performance

SUBJECT AVERAGE GRADE
Language 2.88
Mathematics 1.35
Science 1.71
Fig.11: Average Grade Obtained
3.5
Grades obtained
2.88
3
2.5
2 1.71
1.35
1.5
1
0.5
0
Language Maths Science
Subject
2) Comparison of performance sex wise: a comparison of performance

of the male and female students shows that in science the girls have
scored more than the boys while in the other two subjects namely
mathematics and gujarati language boys have outperformed girls.
Table16: Sex Wise Comparison

SUBJECTS \ SEX MALE FEMALE
Language 2.9 2.8
Mathematics 1.4 1.3
Science 1.7 1.7
Fig. 12: Sex Wise Comparison

Grades obtained
2.9 2.8
3
2 1.7 1.7 Male

1.4 1.3
Female
1
0
Language Maths Science
Subject
3) Performance Subject Wise:
a) Performance in Gujarati language: In Gujarati language there was no

one who could read the texts i.e. no one scored zero. Out of a total of 169
only 50 students achieved grade four showing the poor level of
knowledge.
Table 17: Performance In Gujarati Language

0 0
1 19
2 32
3 68
4 50
Total 169

Fig. 13: Performance in Gujarati Language
80
Number of Students
68
60 50
40 32
19
20
0
0
0 1 2 3 4
Grades obtained
b) Performance in mathematics: in mathematics the result was very poor.

Looking at the grades we see that there were 37 students who did not knew
simple mathematical operations. These 37 students comprised of all the
three classes i.e. 8th, 9th and 10th. Only five students were found who could
solve all the questions.
Table 18: Performance in Mathematics

GRADES NUBMER OF STUDENTS
0 37
1 67
2 38
3 22
4 5
Total 169

Fig. 14: Performance of students in Mathematics
80
Number of students
67
60
37 38
40
22
20 5
0
0 1 2 3 4
Grade obtained
b) Performance in Science: similar situation was found in science
Table 19: Performance in Science

0 16
1 68
2 43
3 33
4 9
TOTAL 169
Fig. 15: Performance in Science
80
Number of students
68
60
43
40 33
16
20 9
0
0 1 2 3 4
Grade obtained
6 ANALYSIS OF THE SCHEMES

This study has tried to analyse the schemes covered through “The Learning Process
Approach” of rural development programming developed by David C. Korten.

According to Korten, “the performance of a development program can be

characterised as a function of the ‘fit’ achieved between beneficiaries, program and
the assisting organisation.”
In other words, a development program is bound to fail in achieving its objectives

unless there is a close correspondence between: beneficiary needs and program
outputs; program task requirements and the distinctive competence of the assisting
organisation; and the mechanisms for demand expression and the decision processes
of the assisting organisation.
Fig. 16: Schematic representation of Fit requirements
PROGRAMME
OUTPUTS TASK REQUIREMENTS
NEEDS COMPETENCIES
BENEFICIARIES ORGANISATION
DECISION PROCESS
DEMAND EXPRESSION
The appropriateness and requirement of these fits varies with different programs with
respect to its time and circumstance. Every program finds a particular solution in
terms of requirement of these fit appropriate to its time and circumstance. They are
developed over a period of time in a particular set of conditions. Any attempt of

replication of the experiences of one program or an organisational blueprint,

elsewhere, is likely to fail.
As Korten says, “it is to the process of their (fit requirements) development that we
must look for the most useful lessons.”
We look at the schemes namely the Ashram Shalas and the ideal residential schools
according to the above framework between the program, beneficiaries and the
assisting organisation i.e. SJED. The three fit requirements and the extent of
correspondence between them can be seen as follows:
1) Fit between outputs of the educational schemes and the needs of the
beneficiaries:
The framework is being applied on the basis of the study conducted in the six
districts. The schemes were meant to cater to the people who were either of
backward class and those who were financially weak. The mission of the
department mentions at providing educational and financial assistance to the
downtrodden class so that they have access to equal rights. Around 7.5 % of the
population of the state are Scheduledd caste. The Scheduledd caste
department’s Ashram Shalas and the ideal residential schools are meant to cater
only to the above mentioned caste. While the socially and economically
backward class (S.E.B.C) department looked after the other downtrodden class.
The first fit requirement looks at the needs of the beneficiaries and the outputs
that the scheme is providing. We can divide the needs into immediate short term
and long term. The immediate needs of the beneficiary is free of cost lodging,
boarding and the other facilities like free education , books etc. the short term
objectives is access to quality free of educational infrastructure so that they can
be at par with the students in terms of scholastic knowledge so that they can
have a better standard of living. The long term needs of the scheme are to lift
the overall condition of this downtrodden class so that no citizen of the state
feels any sort of discrimination or social injustice.

A review of the outputs of the programme suggests that the schemes are
catering only the immediate needs of the beneficiaries. The short term and the
long term needs of the beneficiaries have been completely overlooked. The
quality of education being provided is of course making the target segment
literate but it is unable to convert the raw materials into the product that is
intended.
2) Fit between task requirements of the program and competence of the

organisation:
The next fit requirement is between the task requirements or what needs to be
done in implementing the program and the competence of the assisting
organisation to carry out those tasks. The different task requirements of the
educational schemes of Ashram Shalas and the ideal residential schools can be
listed as follows:
Planning
Selection of beneficiaries
Logistics
Input supply
Monitoring & Evaluation
These task requirements are objective (not imaginary) and must be performed
to implement the program. Each of the above tasks includes a number of
activities and has different mechanism of performing. This mechanism is
developed by the assisting organisation. This requires different nature and level
of competence in the staff of the organisation. The competencies expected in
the staff can be classified as technical, social and motivational competence. All
of them are equally important but each task requires them in different
proportions. A right mix of all the three is conducive for the organisation as a
whole.

In the schemes, the technical know-how comprises of the skills possessed by

the teachers and the staffs at different levels of the social justice and
empowerment department. The surveys revealed that neither the staffs of the
department nor the teachers in Ashram Shalas or the Ideal Residential Schools
were skilled enough to produce the desired output.
The social skills are required in the program personnel for building a rapport
with the target beneficiaries and ensuring their participation in the program. The
social skills are also needed to build a rapport within the organization at
different levels.
Finally the motivational skills are required to motivate both the field staff and
the beneficiaries towards achievement of the objectives of the program. It is
required for organizing and mobilizing people towards collective action in their
larger benefit.
In order to perform the task required for implementation of the scheme and
attain the desired output the SJED department should try to acquire those
competencies, which it is lacking.
3) Fit between the mechanism of demand expression of the beneficiaries and

decision process of the organisation:
This is the most difficult fit to achieve in a particular setting of a development
program, target beneficiaries and the assisting organisation. It is between the
mechanism through which the beneficiaries express their needs and demands
and the decision process or institutionalized environment of the organisation.
As the government approaches are top to down there is no scope of this fit to be
found in the program.
7 PROBLEMS & SUGGESTIONS REGARDING ASHRAM SHALAS
7.1 Problems

• Poor Infrastructure:
Ashram Shalas lack proper infrastructure.
Classrooms: Ashrmashalas do not have enough number of classrooms for
seven classes. Out of 15 Ashram Shalas 11 ashrasalas have 4 or less than 4
classrooms. Thus two or more classes are running simultaneously. This
affects quality of teaching in Ashram Shalas.
Table 20: Number of classrooms

Number of classrooms Number of Ashram Shalas
Less than 4 5
4 6
5 1
6 2
More than 6 1
• Teachers: In Ashram Shalas students are taught from standard one to

standard seven. But apart from one ashramsala none of the Ashram Shalas
have more than four teachers. As per table we can see that in 8 Ashram
Shalas out of 15 have only three or less than three teachers to teach in seven
classes. Thus one teacher is teaching in three or four classes simultaneously.
So students do not get proper attention of teachers. This affects quality of
teaching and understanding of students.

Table 23: Number of teachers

Number of teachers Number of Ashram Shalas
2 or less than 2 4
3 4
4 6
More than 4 1
• Poor technical competencies of teachers: Teachers in Ashram Shalas are

found to be incompetent to teach in standard five, six and seven. We tested
competencies of teachers. Out of 28 teachers we tested, only 3 were found
to be competent. This is affecting quality of education in Ashram Shalas.
Even PTC teachers appointed as per guidelines of Government were found
lacking in competency. These teachers could not solve the mathematical
problems of standard five, six and seven.
• Low motivational competency: Teachers in Ashram Shalas were found

lacking in motivation to teach. They were not concerned about students’
education.
• Lack of Accountability: Government is spending about rs. 7 lakhs per

annum on an average on each Ashram Shalas. These Ashram Shalas were
started for educating the students belonging to underprivileged class of the
society. However school management is not accountable for quality of
education in the ashramsla. Since the government grant is linked to physical
infrastructure such as number of students, number of teachers and other
tangible facilities, the school management were more focused on
maintaining the physical infrastructure. They are not accountable to
government for poor quality of education.

7.2 Suggestion:
We found out that significant number of students is studying in Ashram Shalas
in various parts of Gujarat. These Ashram Shalas have been able to attract and
retain students. Now the need of hour is to educate these students to meet the
basic objective of these Ashram Shalas. The Government has its own political
and financial compulsions and limitations that act as a hindrance in overhauling
the whole system to make it effective and efficient. Still steps can be taken
within the boundary of limitations to make the present system better.
As per our understanding of the system, we suggest following measures that

will help in improving the standard of education in these Ashram Shalas:
Short Term action plan
• Increased number of classrooms: All the Ashram Shalas shall have at least 4
classrooms. This should be strictly followed. These classrooms shall be the entire
required infrastructure for students’ education.
• Teachers: At present many of the Ashram Shalas have only two or three teachers.
This affects the quality of teaching because one teacher manages three or four
classes at a time so proper attention is not given to students. So all the Ashram
Shalas should be asked to appoint at least four teachers.
• Qualification of teachers: The PTC qualified teachers were found wanting in

knowledge. A PTC qualified teacher who have not studied science till
intermediate level was not able to solve mathematical problem of standard six and
seven. So students are learning wrong lessons in class because teacher
himself/herself does not know the correct answers. The purpose of this system is
getting defeated. So from now onwards teachers with following qualification
should be given preference in appointment:

- PTC with Maths at intermediate level

- B. Sc., B. Ed.
- M. Sc.
- B. Sc.
A candidate who does not posses these minimum qualifications shall not be
appointed.
• Pattern of teaching: At present teachers used to teach in Ashram Shalas on class

basis. For example a teacher used to teach all subjects in one class. This
underutilises the competencies of teachers and also affects students. This system
of teaching should be changed. Teachers should teach on period basis. A teacher
good in some subject shall teach that subject(s) in all the higher classes. This will
lead to better learning of students as well as it will increase the interaction
between students and teachers.
• Identity of students: All the Ashram Shalas should keep one photograph each of
all the students studying in that school. This will help in verifying the identity of
students and will minimise the instances of dummy students.
Medium Term action plan
• Appointment of teachers: All further appointment of teachers in Ashram Shalas

should be done on line of appointment of teachers in Ideal Residential Schools
(IRS). This will ensure appointment of competent teachers.
• Accountability: School management should be made accountable for quality of
education in the Ashram Shalas. The annual grant should be linked to the quality
of education in Ashram Shalas. If proper education is not imparted in schools then
the sanctioned strength of school should be reduced and in extreme cases it should
be derecognised.

This accountability can be insured by forming a committee at school level

comprising of representatives from school management, government officials and
representatives of parents of students studying in that Ashram Shala. This
committee will monitor the functioning of schools. Parents will ensure that there is
no understanding between government officials and school management
detrimental to the interest of students.
• Government control: Government need to increase its control over these schools.
It should not confine its role as a mere financer. It should have its control over
school management and teachers.
• Issue of Identity cards to teaching and non – teaching staffs : The department
should issue identity cards to all teaching and non – teaching staff members of
Ashram Shalas. This will minimise the cases of dummy staff members. School
office should also have one photograph each of all the staff members in that
Ashram Shala.
Long Term action plan
• Closing of Ashram Shalas

The Ashram Shalas should be closed and the school building should be acquired
by the state government. These infrastructure shall be used by the government for
promoting IRS.
8 PROBLEM & SUGGESTIONS REGARDING “IRS”

8.1 Problems
• Lack of Infrastructure

Ideal Residential Schools does not have proper infrastructure for students.
There is lack of science equipments for standard Ninth and Tenth students.
This affects their practical learning in science.
There is severe problem of space in some of the IRS like that in
Surendranagar. There is not enough space in classrooms. Students cannot
even move their hands freely. It makes the task of teachers very difficult.
In some cases like one in Gandhinagar, the quality of blackboard is so poor
that one cannot properly read things written on it.
In some of the IRS there is no playground or other facilities for
refreshments of students. Thus students have no facility for unwinding.
• Deployment of teachers
There is not proper deployment of teachers across the IRS. The number of
teachers in IRS varies from 4 to 12 across the IRS. This led to scarcity of
teachers in some of the IRS.
There is improper deployment of teachers with regard to subjects also. For
example in one IRS there is more than one teacher for a particular subject
and in other IRS there is no teacher for that subject.
• Low pass percentage

The passing percentage in class 10th is low except for some IRS. Since the
passing percentage is only 35% in class 10th and there is provision of grace
marks by Examination board so all the students should at least pass
standard 10th.
• Poor quality of education

The quality of education is poor in IRS. Student studying in standard nine
and ten is not able to solve problems of standard eight. The retention
capacity of students is very low. This shows that the teaching techniques
are not correct.

The quality of education is better understood if one takes a closer look at

the marks obtained by students in standard 10th then. Students get
maximum marks in Physical Education and Sanskrit. Average marks
obtained in Physical Education are around 90 and that in Sanskrit is around
80 whereas marks obtained in science and maths is very low. The average
marks in Science and Maths is around 35. This shows that students could
not score good marks in important subjects like maths and science.
• Low utilisation of available capacities of IRS:

At present the IRS is not able to attract students to its full capacity. In some
schools the number of students is less than the sanctioned strength whereas
some schools are over crowded.
8.2 Suggestions
Short term action plans
• Proper guideline on transfer
There should be lack of proper guideline on transfer and deployment of

teachers in IRS. The number of teachers varies widely across the IRS. The
proper guideline on deployment of teacher will solve two problems. It will
minimise the influence of nexus between IRS staff members and
government officials. The higher officials will not be able to use their
discretion in deployment of staff members. It will also enable better
utilisation of teachers.
• Remedial session for class eight students

There should be remedial sessions for class 8th students. This will enable
them to build the foundation stone for higher classes. The remedial

sessions should be for one month. This should be centered on maths and
science of standard sixth and seventh.
• Entrance exams district wise:

The entrance exams for standard eight, nine and tenth should be held
district wise and not school wise as done presently. This will ensure better
administration of admission process and at the same time will ensure that
total capacity of schools is fully utilized. The students shall fill only one
form. The entrance exams will be taken simultaneously in all schools. The
students shall get the school of her/his choice depending on their
performance in entrance exams.
Medium Term action plan
• Better Infrastructure need to be provided

There should be more physical infrastructure in IRS. The classrooms
should be spacious and there should be adequate furniture in classrooms.
The living rooms should be spacious.
The kitchen room should be away from living rooms and class rooms. This
will ensure safety of students. Otherwise it can prove to be dangerous in
case of any accidents.
• SC students should not be enrolled in SEBC schools

Government has framed rules that only SC students shall be enrolled in SC
schools. So the SEBC schools should be for only SEBC and EBC students
because SC schools are there only for SCs. This will ensure that benefits
reach to EBC class of the society.
Long Term action plan
• IRS should be for standard 5 to 10

The IRS should ideally be from standard 5th to standard 10th. This will
ensure that get admission in a good system at early stage. This will
improve their level of learning at primary level. Its easier to teach students
at higher level if they good education at primary level.

Annexure: 1
List of Ashram Shalas Studied:
District Place Name of Ashramshala Target Year of Sanctioned
Population Inception strength
Mehsana Sakari Baxipanch Ashramshala SEBC 1990-91 120
Nadan Baxipanch Ashramshala SEBC 1981-82 120
Valam Navjivan ashramshala NT/DNT 1961-62 120
Mathasur Kasturba Ashrmashala SC 1991-92 120
Mandali Anusuchit Jati ashramshala SC 1981-82 60
Rajkot Matel Baxipanch Ashramshala SEBC 1979-80 120
Kharachiya Baxipanch Ashramshala SEBC 1994-95 120
Kuvada Baxipanch Ashramshala SEBC 1999-2000 120
Maliyasan Anusuchit Jati ashramshala SC 1990-91 120
Gopaldham Anusuchit Jati ashramshala SC 1994-95 96
Anand Jantral Baxipanch Ashramshala SEBC 1984-85 120
Kothiyakhad Baxipanch Ashramshala SEBC 1993-94 120
Anklav Rangsagar Ashramshala SEBC 1994-95 120
Sarol Baxipanch Ashramshala NT/DNT 1981-82 120
Indranaj Sant Savaiyanath SC 1997-98 120
Ashramshala

Annexure: 2
List of Ideal Residential Schools:

District Place Name of Ashramshala Target Gend Year of Sancti
Population er Inception oned
strengt
h
Mehsana Kheralu Adarsh Residential School SEBC Boys 1990-91 120
Kheralu Adarsh Residential School SEBC Boys 2000-01 120
Kheralu Adarsh Residential School SEBC Boys 2002-03 120
Kadi Adarsh Residential School SEBC Boys 1989-90 135
Rajkot Morbi Adarsh Residential School Agariyas Boys 2002-03 120
Rajkot Adarsh Residential School SEBC Boys 1992-93 120
Rajkot Adarsh Residential School SC Boys 120
Vadodra Vadodra Adarsh Residential School SC Girls 120
Vadodra Adarsh Residential School SEBC Girls 1991-92 120
Vadodra Adarsh Residential School SEBC Girls 1994-95 120
Surendra Surendra Adarsh Residential School Agariya Girls 2002-03 120
nagar nagar
Gandhina Gandhina Adarsh Residential School SC Girls 120
gar gar
Gandhina Adarsh Residential School SEBC Girls
gar
Gandhina Adarsh Residential School SC Boys
gar
Gandhina Adarsh Residential School SEBC Boys
gar

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EVALUATION OF ASHRAMSHALAS & IDEAL

Organizational Traineeship Segment

INSTITUTE OF RURAL MANAGEMENT, ANAND

EVALUATION OF ASHRAM SHALAS AND IDEAL

2 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

1.1 Ashram Shalas

3 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

Presently Social Justice and Empowerment Department sanction the new

These Ashram Shalas provide education from Standard I up to Standard VII.

4 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

5 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

Table 1: Approved strength and number of staffs

1.2 Ideal Residential Schools

6 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

1. How to improve the quality of education in the these schools

7 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

3. Scope of the Study

8 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

Figure 1: Districts of Study

Districts where study was conducted

4. Data Requirements and Sources

9 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

II. Data collected

i. From School Management

10 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

 Process of enrollment of students

ii. From Teachers

iii. From Students

11 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

12 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

Population for our sampling included the followings:

Teachers: All the teachers teaching in the above-mentioned institutions. Each

We conducted group discussion with students of standard five to standard seven

13 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

Variables on which samples were collected:

We also included schools for both boys as well as girls.

14 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

Year of Inception: These schools were started at different point of time so we

Table 2: Division of school on the basis of year of inception

Table 3: Distribution of sample as per year of inception

15 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

Table 4: Number of Residential Schools studied

Table 5: Number of Ashram Shalas studied

16 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

17 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

The broad findings are as follows

• Accountability: We found out that school management is not accountable to

• Department’s basis of evaluation: The department of social welfare is more

18 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

• Punishment measures: Government does annual auditing of these Ashram

• Admission in standard I and II: School management gives admission in

Table 6: Drop out rate in Ashram Shalas

19 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

Table 7: Drop out Rate of SC and SEBC Ashram Shalas

The reasons for drop outs are found to be followings:

20 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

 Child Labour: Child labour is found to be one of the most prominent

• Admission Procedure: We inspected the admission forms of current year.

• Pattern of teaching: In Ashram Shalas one teacher is teaching all subjects in

21 Rajneesh, Sudha Kant

• Teachers: There were large instances of dummy teachers in school. They

• Teacher Student Ratio: Teacher Student ratio in Ashram Shalas is found to be