GUWAHATI, April 16 - The regional plan meeting for the development of science and mathematics education in schools in the North East was held here recently.
The meeting was chaired by CK Das, member of the North Eastern Council (NEC), under the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), Government of India.
It was attended by senior functionaries from the Department of School Education from various states of the North East and officials from the NEC.
Issues related to the present status of science and mathematics in the North East was discussed to find out a perspective plan for its improvement.
The meeting started with a brief presentation on the findings of the study conducted by NEDFi with support from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati.
According to the findings, the performance of students in mathematics and science in the North East was a cause for concern.
In Tripura, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, the average score was higher than the regional average, while in Nagaland, Meghalaya and Mizoram, the average scores were lower than the regional average.
As per the report, among the factors that may have contributed to the low performance of the students includes differences in the educational level of the parents and dissimilarities in the teaching-learning methodologies used.
The study took up a plan for improving science education in schools in the region, according to which this development can be achieved by offering quality education, especially in the science and technology sector.
To implement the various strategies, the report proposed different activities that are needed to be taken up for each strategy.
The total funding required for implementing the components of the proposed Regional Plan is estimated to be around Rs 38.64 crore, which would cover 600 schools in the region � 145 schools in Assam and 65 in each of the other states.
�The reason for higher unemployment in the North East is due to the lack of skilled people. If students are not good in science and mathematics, the region will not get learned people in medical, engineering or commerce sectors. Students should get proper facilities in schools for learning mathematics and science. Without good education in science and mathematics, the region will not grow,� said NEC member CK Das, after presentation of the report.
