Wanted: Rules for preschools

Education has been the priority sector for some time now. And, it has been receiving a lot of attention. This public gaze is both good and troublesome, since educational institutes are now being looked at through the microscope and practices are being questioned and challenged.

The RTE is naturally the biggest news of this year and its implementation overshadowed most other concerns, including that of preschool regulations which had gathered quite some steam during the past few years.

The preschool sector became an industry when the private companies realised that due to non regulations, entry into the sector was relatively easy. Soon, preschools mushroomed. Business plans talked in terms of creations of thousands of preschools. The likes of Eurokids and Kidzee created about 5,000-7,000 schools across India. These branded preschools came to be called the organised sector.

Traditionally, preschools were more like mom-and-pop operations. A female teacher would start the school and her husband would run the administration. The organised sector or the branded preschool is a relatively new phenomenon in India. Industry reports predicted the sectoral growth at 36% CAGR and pegged it to be a $1 billion industry. Soon, the Big 4 firms of the world started writing reports on the how lucrative the business was and how it offered 35% ROI (return on investment) within the first year itself. Such reports further spiraled the entry of larger number of private players. Some groups like Tree House went public after having created a few hundred schools.

The sector definitely has a low entry barrier. Any entrepreneur can rent a place with a few thousand rupees, upgrade the facility for a few lakh rupees and get started. Due to lack of awareness, most parents focus on a neighbourhood concept for enrolling tiny tots, rather than admitting children after studying the philosophy, manifesto, good teaching methodology and on the basis of qualified teachers at the preschool.  The preschool years are a very critical learning period for young children, since much of the way the child learns and retains is developed during this time. Yet there being no restrictions, just about anybody can become a preschool teacher. The first restriction required is in the basic degree for teachers, at least an NTT (Nursery trained Teacher) or an ECC graduate (Early Childhood) should be hired. There is a scientific, technical, social, psychological and historical aspect to education that cannot be ignored by hiring a fresher and novice.

Many people, especially women, are adept at handling little students, but that alone cannot be the pre-requisite to becoming a preschool teacher.

Some countries such as Australia have as many as 17 regulatory bodies that regulate preschools. While that seems like quite a large number that can led to multiple red-tapism, the Indian way of zero regulations is an equally risky proposition.

Several factors such as fee, quality of teachers being hired, safety standards in the premises, curriculum development as per physical and emotional growth milestones are among the key parameters that need standardisation.

The writer is  an entrepreneur and educationist. She can be reached at shroffmp@gmail.com