The Bihar government has decided to rank schools of the state twice a year to address the repeated complaints about the quality of education in the schools.

The schools would be assessed on several parameters and would be given grades ranging from A+ (excellent) to D (worst) and star ratings (five stars to one star) according to their scores depending on their performance. Their ranks or grades would be taken into account in the annual appraisal of teachers.

In a letter written to all district education officers on Wednesday, Bihar education department additional chief secretary S. Siddharth said: “The government is determined to provide quality education and all-round development to students. We have decided to rank all schools twice every year in November and March.”

Siddharth added that the education department had already issued a guide or manual for the teachers on how to improve education and the ranking comes as a step in the same direction.

“Different formats have been prepared for primary, middle, secondary and higher secondary schools in which maximum marks have been fixed under various heads such as teaching, use of resources, cleanliness and hygiene, complaint redressal, and allied educational activities. The total marks are 100. The ranking of a school will be mandatorily considered in the annual appraisal report of its teachers,” the additional chief secretary said.

All the district education officers have been asked to provide a copy of the letter to the principals of all schools across the state while keeping in mind “the importance and sensitiveness of the issue”.

The maximum weight while assessing the schools would be given to teaching and learning, including average marks in monthly, half-yearly, and annual examinations, average attendance of students and teachers in the past three months, regular checking of classwork and homework, additional classes, and parents-teachers meetings.

Teaching and learning will carry 55 marks out of 100 in the grading of primary and middle schools, and 60 marks for secondary and higher secondary schools.

The schools would also be given marks based on clean uniforms of the students, their trimmed nails, cleanliness of kitchen, campus and toilet, availability of classrooms, benches and desks for all students, water supply, laboratory and library.

Elderly woman gang-raped

Unidentified criminals barged into the hut of an 80-year-old woman and allegedly gang-raped her in Begusarai district of Bihar on the intervening night of Tuesday and Wednesday.

Police got information on Wednesday morning about the incident that occurred near Karkauli village under Bakhri police station. The Bakhri sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) and station house officer rushed there to probe it.

“The 80-year-old woman lived alone in a hut and survived by asking for food in the neighbouring villages. The local people and a relative (sister-in-law) told our officials that a few unidentified persons arrived at her place. They beat and sexually assaulted her,” a statement issued by the office of Begusarai SP Maneesh (goes by one name) said.