This story is from January 23, 2020

Punjab hits WhatsApp to hard-sell government schools

The Punjab education department has decided to take the WhatsApp and Facebook route to rev up its campaign to attract more students to government schools.
Punjab hits WhatsApp to hard-sell government schools
In the current academic session, 2,42,1108 students secured admission in 19,166 government schools, recording a jump of 91,486 from last year. Last year, the enrolment figure was 2,32,9622.
CHANDIGARH: The Punjab education department has decided to take the WhatsApp and Facebook route to rev up its campaign to attract more students to government schools.
As part of its social media-centric campaign, all schools have been directed to have a Facebook page, highlighting the benefits of studying in government schools, facilities, fee structure, achievements, profile of teachers and success stories.
Special focus will be given to initiatives like smart schools, aimed at improving the quality of education in government schools. Teachers have been asked to share text/ images/ video messages with the target audience through WhatsApp.
Special focus will be given to initiatives like smart schools, aimed at improving the quality of education in government schools. Teachers have been asked to share text/ images/ video messages with the target audience through WhatsApp.
To maximise the response, the department will also advertise through outdoor and other mediums. Each school will constitute a media team for preparing pamphlets and getting these circulated.
The teams will also identify locations near their respective schools for putting up flex boards and hoardings containing publicity material.
Schools will get brochures published for distribution in panchayats, undertake publicity by use of vehicles and organize street plays to spread awareness about government schools.
Nodal officers for the enrolment drive will be designated in each district to identify schools having maximum scope of enrolment. The department has also directed schools to rope in midday meal workers and anganwadi workers in the campaign.

For convenience of parents, admission forms in Punjabi and English will be put on the official website of the department.
To motivate the employees to boost the enrolment campaign, the department is planning to incorporate contributions made by them in their annual confidential report (ACR) and issuing appreciation letters.
Confident of attracting more students than the ongoing session, Punjab education secretary Krishan Kumar said a lot of initiatives have been taken by the department for improving the quality of education in government schools and bringing it at par with private schools.
“There is a need to make people aware about the initiatives and a detailed action plan has been made for this,” he added.
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About the Author
Vinod Kumar

Vinod Kumar is with The Times of India’s Punjab Bureau at Chandigarh. He covers news concerning Punjab politics, Health, Education, Employment and Environment.

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