This rise in demand for English-medium schools has, however, come at the cost of the downfall of vernacular language ones, particularly Marathi-medium schools.
The demand for English-medium schools has risen sharply in recent times in the city. Between 2013 and 2016, as many as 627 new English-medium schools have sprung up across the city and the suburbs. In the same period, enrolment in English-medium schools has increased by 3.6 lakh. Incidentally, the rise has been sharpest in the suburbs, where 2.8 lakh students have been added between 2013 and 2016, according to data received from the education department. This rise indicates more parents now prefer to send their children to English-medium schools.
This rise in demand for English-medium schools has, however, come at the cost of the downfall of vernacular language ones, particularly Marathi-medium schools. In the said period, 35 Marathi-medium schools were shut down as enrollment dropped by over 83,000. The enrollment dropped by over 25,000 for Urdu-medium schools in Mumbai, although only two have shut down.
Officials said the loss of vernacular-medium schools was the gain of English-medium ones. “These days parents are more inclined to get their children admitted to English-medium schools. There is a perception that children in English schools have better prospects,” said an official.
Another cause for the drop in demand, according to teachers, is the lack of secondary sections in regional language schools. “For instance, it becomes difficult for students to switch from Tamil to Marathi or English after Class V. So parents start off with English in the first place,” said a principal of a suburban Tamil school.
Meanwhile, teachers in vernacular schools have been hit the most with this shift in preference. While the declining enrollment has forced some of the schools to shut down, the teachers have been declared ‘surplus’ or extra.
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