Single-teacher schools are failing India's children. Here's what must change

India Today

3 hours ago

On paper, the Right to Education Act is clear: every primary school must have at least two teachers and one for every 30 students. Yet, travel into the heartlands of India, especially to states like Jharkhand, and you'll find a very different reality. Nearly one in three government primary schools there is run by a single teacher.In some states, that lone teacher is expected to handle 70, even 90 children. And more often than not, these schools are tucked away in remote tribal villages or Dalit hamlets -- places that desperately need education the most.advertisementSometimes, there's no teacher at all.
Economist and activist Jean Dreze, who has long worked on rural education in India, calls this 'a stark symptom of a larger failure to enforce RTE norms.' And the data backs him.According to the UDISE 2021-22 data on single-teacher schools from the education ministry, Jharkhand isn't alone. States like Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka also report worryingly high numbers of single-teacher schools. But in Jharkhand, the problem runs deeper -- and longer.ALARMING NUMBERS IN JHARKHAND AND OTHER STATESJharkhand hasn't hired new teachers since 2016. In the years since, many have retired or passed away, creating a gaping hole in the teaching force.'Even at that time, there were massive teacher shortages,' Dreze points out. 'Meanwhile, many teachers have retired or died, intensifying the shortage.'Dreze has even co-filed a PIL in the Jharkhand High Court in 2023 demanding appointments of 26,000 teachers. He says the state's crisis is rooted in years of neglect.
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According to 2021-22 UDISE data, Jharkhand has the highest proportion of single-teacher schools among all major Indian states -- 30.9% of its government primary schools. Even worse, these schools serve an average of 46 students each, far above what any one teacher can manage.For comparison, Andhra Pradesh (33.9%), Telangana (30.3%), Karnataka (29%), Rajasthan (27.2%) and Himachal Pradesh (28.2%) also report high proportions of single-teacher schools.In Bihar, only 9.7% of schools are single-teacher, but they serve a staggering 96 students on average. Uttar Pradesh, despite its size, has only 2.5% single-teacher schools -- but each of these has around 70 pupils.At the other end of the spectrum, Kerala stands out, with just 4% single-teacher schools and only 10 pupils per school.And this is where we need to differentiate between the issue of single-teacher schools and that of mini schools.'MINI-SCHOOLS' AREN'T THE PROBLEM -- BAD POLICY ISadvertisementSome officials casually label all single-teacher schools as 'mini-schools.' Before the Right to Education (RTE) Act came in, mini-schools were a quick-fix way to reach remote habitations where enrolment would be very low anyway.But once the RTE norms kicked in -- demanding minimum infrastructure and at least two teachers per school -- the system was supposed to upgrade. It didn't.Dr Jean Dreze explains it simply: 'Mini-schools are easy to identify. There are some in most states, but not many. But the problem of single-teacher schools is much larger, certainly in Jharkhand.'While Kerala or Himachal might post one teacher to handle 10-15 kids in a remote hill or forest village, Jharkhand averages 46 students per single-teacher school. In Bihar, it's 96. These aren't "mini" -- they're overcrowded, neglected, and barely functional.So when some policymakers try to lump all single-teacher setups under the 'mini-school' banner to justify the lack of staffing, it's dangerous. It's just bad policy.
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advertisementTHE CASTE QUESTIONThe problem isn't limited to teacher shortages. It's also about where teachers are posted. It's no coincidence that the worst-hit areas are largely inhabited by Dalits and Adivasis.Urban and easily accessible villages tend to receive more teachers. Remote Adivasi and Dalit villages -- where parents are often first-generation learners -- are left with barely one, or sometimes none.'Discrimination is very much part of the problem,' says Derze. Teachers are often reluctant to take up posts in these communities.'Teacher placement discriminates against remote villages inhabited by marginalised communities,' Dreze says. 'Children who needed the best schooling facilities, because their communities have been excluded from education for centuries, end up getting the worst.'The government, too, appears to have deprioritised these schools when it comes to allocation and oversight.WHEN A SCHOOL IS JUST A MEAL CENTREThis single-teacher school crisis in Jharkhand was laid bare at a public hearing held in June 2025 in Manika block of Latehar district, based on a survey of 40 single-teacher schools in the area. Villagers gathered to share what daily schooling actually looks like.'Once food is served, the school closes,' said Salmani Devi from Ambatikar village. 'When we ask officials about this, they say -- 'What will village children study?''advertisementJamuna village's Chinta Devi described how their school technically has two teachers, but one is always absent and the other is too busy with paperwork.For Kavita Devi from Karmahi village, it's not just a learning issue -- it's a matter of her children's future. 'I don't want them to become daily wage workers like me,' she said.Mayawati Devi, also from Karmahi, added that when they confront teachers about the poor quality of education, the teachers simply blame the government.Geeta Devi from Chatra village pointed out how the system seems more invested in feeding children than educating them. 'Everyone asks what food was served in school, but no one asks what was taught,' she said.
From the public hearing on single-teacher schools in Jharkhand in June 2025
And when it comes to basic schemes? Phuliya Devi noted that 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' isn't implemented in her village at all.Even corruption plays a role. Kunti Devi, a School Management Committee member, said that the headmaster demanded Rs 150 from each student for school uniforms. 'Because I couldn't pay, my child didn't get one,' she said.advertisementWhen the matter was raised with Block Education Officer Rajshree Puri, she responded by suggesting that anyone in the village who has passed Class 12 can teach voluntarily -- even without pay.This, Dreze says, is part of a larger policy. 'Jharkhand has a policy of allowing volunteers with education above Class 12 to take classes in government schools on an honorary basis,' he acknowledges.But he warns that such ad-hoc arrangements can be dangerous, especially if they are used as a substitute for actual teachers.Dreze warns that such stop-gap measures are not only ineffective but dangerous. 'The danger is that such classes will substitute for teacher time, or act as an entry point for cranks and crooks,' he says. 'But these classes rarely happen in any case.'Here's the data on single-teacher schools as per the UDISE 2021-22 report:StateProportion of schools with a single teacher (%)Proportion of children enrolled in single-teacher schools (%)Average number of pupils in single-teacher schoolsJharkhand30.924.946Karnataka29.021.223Rajasthan27.218.930Himachal Pradesh28.218.619Madhya Pradesh21.317.339Andhra Pradesh33.915.524Jammu & Kashmir19.013.915Uttarakhand27.911.915Telangana30.310.721Chhattisgarh15.38.734Punjab18.27.132Bihar9.77.196All major States14.76.933Odisha8.66.637Gujarat7.24.634Assam8.74.333Maharashtra11.74.220Tamil Nadu8.34.132Haryana7.22.848West Bengal5.21.829Uttar Pradesh2.51.570Kerala4.00.310WHO IS RESPONSIBLE?The RTE norms are over a decade old. Why haven't they been enforced?According to Dreze, the buck stops with both political leadership and the education bureaucracy. 'The irresponsibility of the bureaucrats and functionaries is also staggering,' he says. 'They care mostly about finance and records, without much concern for children.'The silence from the political class is equally deafening. 'In Jharkhand, the schooling system is a disaster but one rarely hears about this in parliamentary debates, media reports, public discussions or electoral campaigns,' he says.Even the courts -- though recently helpful -- can only do so much. A PIL filed by Dreze and others led the Jharkhand High Court to order the appointment of 26,000 new teachers.But as Dreze says, "Judicial activism is certainly not enough. This failure is first and foremost a political failure.'Filling the 26,000 teacher vacancies in Jharkhand are just the beginning. According to petitioners in the Jharkhand High Court case, the state needs over 60,000 more primary school teachers to meet RTE norms.'
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CAN THE PEOPLE TURN THIS AROUND?Interestingly, while the government looks away, parents haven't stopped caring. At the public hearing in Jharkhand's Latehar, many took a day off from mahua collection -- a crucial seasonal income source -- to attend.It may not seem like much, but it shows that the demand for education is there, especially from parents. It just hasn't found political voice yet.Dreze believes a 'second wave' of the education rights movement is needed. 'Most Indian parents care a lot about their children's education, but collective action on this is rare,' he says. "One reason is that the influential classes have deserted government schools in favour of private schools. The rest feel that there is little they can do.'But this frustration can be harnessed. 'Their strong desire for quality education can probably be turned into a positive energy for public mobilisation,' he adds.And the RTE Act, despite being ignored today, 'includes many useful provisions that are worth fighting for.'THE WAY FORWARDSo what needs to be done? First, appoint teachers -- and appoint them where they're needed. Ensure that no school is left with just one teacher, especially if it's serving a large number of children.Build mechanisms that hold the bureaucracy accountable. And above all, bring the issue back into public conversation.Because at the end of the day, no child should grow up believing that school is just a place to eat rice and leave. They deserve classrooms that function, teachers who show up, and a system that believes they matter. Otherwise, it's not just a schooling failure. It's a national one.- EndsMust Watch