Thanks for your cover story on the EW Early Childhood Education Global Conference 2013 (EW February). The keynote addresses of Rabiatul Adawiah and Dr. S. Anandalakshmy were excellent as were reports on the panel discussions.

In particular I’m pleased you chose to beam focus on the ‘Dangers of age-inappropriate ECE’. This is a big problem in preschools across the country. Most of their curriculums are rote-centric, unstructured, unresearched, inappropriate and not in sync with children’s development stages. Children as young as two and three are made to learn the 3 Rs, do cursive writing, punctuation and are even made to write tests and exams in disciplined classroom environments.

In such a scenario where learning is forced upon young children by untrained teachers, it’s more than likely children will grow up with fear of learning and dread formal schooling. 
Sunaina Mukherjee
Delhi

Saving our universities

Your special report ‘Mumbai University’s downward spiral’ (EW February) comprehensively analyses the sad decline of a once highly-reputed institution. Years of government interference with the university’s administration and faculty appointments is primarily responsible for MU’s sliding reputation. The worst practices of politics — corruption and nepotism — have been imported into the university resulting in sharp decline in academic standards. Not to mention the descent into parochialism with language and regional chauvinism accorded more importance than merit.

Unfortunately MU is not the only Indian university going downhill. Calcutta, Madras, Bangalore and several other state government-funded varsities countrywide are following the same path. It’s sad how these institutions built and supported by taxpayers’ money are going to ruin. The onus is on the public, particularly the academic and students communities to speak up and pressurise the government to act and save our universities and restore them to their former glory.
Rajeev Patil
Mumbai

Gender crimes shame

Re your editorial ‘Gender crime wave requires cold analysis’ (EW January), we must hang our heads in shame that in 21st century India, a young woman has died because of the lust of a few cowardly and insane men. This represents the lowest ebb of our society’s mental imbalance. One cause of gender crimes is that most citizens, especially criminals, don’t fear the law. Because of vote-bank politics, no action is taken in most cases.

The ruling party is responsible for the failure of the law and order machinery, which has created an unsafe environment for women. School curriculums must incorporate and emphasise social values, and parents must not discriminate on the basis of gender. 
Mahesh Kapasi
Delhi

Surprisingly low ranked

I recently came across your September issue featuring the EducationWorld India School Rankings 2012. I am a senior clinical psychologist in Mumbai and appreciate the care taken by your team to identify parameters for ranking of schools. However, I was surprised to see that Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Vidyalaya, Malad and Bombay Cambridge School, Andheri (East), have been ranked low on the parameter of ‘special needs education’.

Both these schools offer the best in-house resource centres for special needs children in the country. They have had trained counselors and special educators since the schools began in 1993. Because of these resource centres, they have achieved ‘zero failure’ from the year 2005. More than 500 special needs students have fared brilliantly under their supervision, and are productive and confident members of society.

Some of the schools which have higher scores provide bare minimum facilities for special needs children, and it is sad that the superior work done by the Bombay Cambridge schools has gone unnoticed or is undermined. I am the HRD head at Bombay Cambridge since 1995, and we have consistently aimed to build high standards of performance and a sensitive educational environment in our five schools.

Please review your ranking methodology.
Upasana Saraf
Bombay Cambridge School
Mumbai

Pleasant surprise

I’m sorry this letter is being sent to you rather late. But we were pleasantly surprised to be ranked as one of India’s best day schools and third in Goa in the EW India School Rankings 2012.

In 2009, Mater Dei completed a century in the service of education. Yes, for more than a century now, we have been working quietly but surely on most of your 12 rating parameters, to be where we are today.

We are pleased to be recognised for our efforts by a prestigious magazine in the field of education, and it will spur us to greater efforts towards improvement.
Cleta Lobo
Principal, Mater Dei Institution
Goa

Schools autonomy enquiry

We are regular subscribers of EducationWorld and appreciate its valuable and informative content. In our opinion, yours is the only magazine in India dedicated to the cause of education and institutional improvement.

In your August 2012 issue, we had read with interest the cover story titled ‘Private schools on warpath’ detailing the launch of an association in Mumbai to challenge the Supreme Court’s order in Society for Unaided Private Schools of Rajasthan vs. Union of India. We request you to publish in your next issue the steps being taken by the association to ensure autonomy of private schools.
Hari Prasad
Joint Secretary, Vidya Vardhaka Sangha on e-mail

Please contact President, National Foundation for Promotion and Protection of Private Education on [email protected] — Editor